Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Basil_Bottletop 01-14-07, 02:04 AM	I am yet another first time DM, and I have something of a dilemna... first the backstory: I decided it was time for me to put my money where my mouth is and DM a game. I chose to leave the very exerienced players I play with on a weekly basis out of this experiment because we sometimes have problems playing our one campaign as it is (a campaign running strong after 3 years, and all side campaigns usually fall under its mercy/weight when attempted as a side-game) and instead asked two guys I have tried to play with before. One of these guys, Ian, has been the DM (X-crawl, Ravenloft, etc) before and I thought he would be an understanding player. The other is a semi-experienced player, Mattt (mostly one-day games, but solid player none the less). I wanted to do somethng different, and by different I mean something [I]I[I] had not had the chance to play; a survival game. here's the setup: lvl 1 core class/race characters...which the guys had no problems with. This was merely to simplify someone choosing an outlandish race, that would hinder the other player... I've seen it happen before.... I hinted at a low-magic game, but would leave that up to them. Both thought it was a brillant idea, and they ended up making a Human Bard(who voluntarily stunted his own bardsong... and I told him he didn't have to, but I'm looking for alternatives to it now... so suggestions on that would be fine too), and a Half-elf Ranger (herbalist, but self-proclaimed NON TREE-HUGGING HIPPIE). Their starting gold? Zero. Their starting equipment? Nada. They only knew that they were slaves. You see, the story actually starts up where another story is ending. The BBEG has an island full of slaves helping him do his evil deeds... only to be interrupted by Champions of Good who try and save the day. The Champions free the slaves and get them onto boats and ship them out into the water as they continue inland to defeat BBEG. (the players do not know the outcome of the fight, I thought that could be played out later on in the campaign.) Our players are part of said slaves, and their story begins as they come ashore a day later, presumeably not the same island. Now they must survive, they have sick and wounded with them, they have no food or fresh water, shelter, and don't know if anyone is following them (other freed slaves or their slave-drivers). During the first session they had a great time trying to figure out how to do and make things with only the things they could find. They took an 11 year old boy NPC (one I had made on the spot to be merely a voice in the crowd-type character, and befriended him... and told me after the game they loved having him around, and hinted at his permenancy) and gave him items and spoils of war (which was interesting because they had very little) and fretted over his safety more than their own. Anyways, they found food (thanks to the ranger's tracking ability and favored enemy Animal), they boosted the morale of the camp (all credit goes to the Bard's good story-telling), and found a small standing structure (and await it's encounter until next session). ~~~~ Now for my question~~~~ any suggestions on how to keep it a balanced survival game? The more they experience and figure out the easier the surviving will be. The more they gain in items the easier the tasks shall come...fyi they now have a spear, a sling, and a club between them. and some plants (which they don't know heal for one point, but were specifically asked for by the "nurse", a lvl 2 cleric without her holy symbol, tending to the sick) I hoped that the other slaves would slow them down, or at least cloud their judgement on sharing, but they have already sacrificed everything they find (food, water, etc) to the group... and are very unselfish (which I'm happy they're doing). I have no plans of railroading them into it, but a town campaign is fine with me, I could throw some cool twists into it if these slaves survive long enough to build a cozy home (hint hint: that island isn't that far away, and who says the Champion won?) but I'm not going to force my players into it. There is plenty of this island (continent?) to explore... so plenty of room for adventure or dungeon crawl if we (their interests included) decided they would have fun with it. Has anyone else had a similar problem of balancing between certain death and the cushy life? Thank you for reading this far, I know I'm long-winded... my professors tell me so all the time. and Thank you for help!
Tiarn 01-14-07, 02:12 AM	Out of curiousity, have you seen Lost? If they've managed to pull an entire 2 (or maybe 3, I'm not sure) seasons out of the concept, I'm sure it's gotta be full of ideas you could use. :) I've never had a game like this before, it sounds like an interesting idea, but I don't think I'll be a lot of help.
Tiarn 01-14-07, 02:17 AM	One thing I noticed... ...and some plants (which they don't know heal for one point, but were specifically asked for by the "nurse", a lvl 2 cleric without her holy symbol, tending to the sick) ... Unless you're houseruling it clerics don't need their holy symbol to cast cure spells.
Basil_Bottletop 01-14-07, 02:21 AM	Actually.... I'm a huge Lost fan.... but it wasn't my muse. BUT, I now feel a bit sheepish because I see the resemblance. I believe you deserve a coveted "touche'" in my book.
Basil_Bottletop 01-14-07, 02:24 AM	sorry, yes, I am house-ruling clerics need holy symbol, mages need spell book and components, sorcerers need components, bards need their instrument, etc.
Basil_Bottletop 01-14-07, 03:12 AM	Something I forgot. In the spirit of the campaign, the players are not the center of the world, and depending on their choices; they may come into situations that are already in the middle of conflict or even finished. I am trying to regulate that by having a hidden time counter in my own notes, one the characters are not aware of.
aristotle91 01-14-07, 03:20 AM	sounds really fun, actually, even if it is similar to Lost.
Tiarn 01-14-07, 04:19 AM	Something I forgot. In the spirit of the campaign, the players are not the center of the world, and depending on their choices; they may come into situations that are already in the middle of conflict or even finished. I am trying to regulate that by having a hidden time counter in my own notes, one the characters are not aware of. I do this all the time. :D It usually works out great, I love it when they come in right in the middle of things.
Redclock_the_Untimely 01-14-07, 04:48 AM	It may sound silly, but Gilligan's Island could give some great plot ideas. Hurricanes, is the area volcanic, are there natives nearby, do soldiers from a war thats over show up and take them all captive, does a confused guy on a flying carpet happen by? Light hearted ideas are easy to adapt and Gilligan's screw-ups can be replaced by the eleven year old boy or another former slave. Sounds fun and good luck.
Basil_Bottletop 01-14-07, 01:00 PM	I like it! I think the light-hearted adventures could be a good counter to the original "Unless you do something right now, you're going to die" story line. And they already treat the boy as one of their own, so his flaws messing with their adventure wouldn't end with the players wanting to kill him. Thank you