A Campaign of Folkloric Heroes - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

A Campaign of Folkloric Heroes

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
natanax
Jul 09, 2008 16:40:06 I've been debating running a campaign where the PC's used to be epic heroes but have had their memories stolen by a devious villain with dastardly plans. This is sort of a "folkloric fantasy" set in an ambiguous and fantastical version of the real world. The feel I want to go for is something like "The Adventures of the Baron Manchausen", "The Fall", "Big Fish" or "Tall Tale: The Adventures of Pecos Bill."

Anyone have any tips on how I would do this?
#2
tom_kalbfus
Jul 10, 2008 9:59:56 How about this as a start, have the characters reside in the non-magical "real world" for a time and have them discover a portal to the magical "alternate Earth". Lets say they had heroic "doubles" in the magical Earth that were killed by the dastardly villain, and when the heros step through the portal they inherit the powers and abilities their legendary doubles had.

Otherwise the Characters had their memories erased and were given identities in the real world for their own safety, but then finds that now the magical world once again needs their abilities and heroism (ala Harry Potter).
#3
gorditobandito
Jul 11, 2008 22:55:41 an important aspect of folklore is that the villain (and all the cronies) 99% of the time do not simply try to overpower the heroes. they are anywhere from mischievous to meticulous mastermind but if there is a straight up fight they should have either an advantage from the environment, traps and hazards/the high ground etc, or it should be a strategic choice that the mastermind has chosen to throw away some of his assets to the players (insubordination for instance)
#4
admiral_lourve
Jul 12, 2008 11:06:04 The main difference between epic fantasy and fables is that magic is rare and extremely powerful in fantasy, but in fables animals often talk, every old woman has a spell or too, not just inhuman hags, in fact spells can be made just with ingredients in a cauldren if you know how... Fairies and goblins put small blessings on families, evil fairy godmothers put princess to sleep...
Thats something else about magic, in epic fantasy magic is like a science that powerful wizards use as a tool, but in fables it's more a extention of ones will. Anger creates angery magic, and magic itself seems more alive. Take the old Jewish fable of The Golem, when the golem was left alone it went on a rampage though the streets!

Magic is wild and emotional.

What else? Ah. Everything, including the heroes of the tale, have other faces and forms. A raven is just a bird, but when a story unfolds and it needs to be; it is also death, or a trickster, or a guide. Perhaps all three. Every ugly old hermit is also a goddess. Dragons are not regal, they are inbodiments of nature, a volcano could be a dragon at times. In fables characters are not people, they are concepts given form.

In fables the land is much more alive, hills sigh, mountains laugh, houses walk on chicken legs. A city is as active as a jungle, with easily as many animals. Brilliantly coloured insects scuttle about the walls, owls peer at people as they stand on the street lamps, stallions race down the roads and tribes of brownies, boggarts, tomtes and even giant trolls live in the corners that no one else uses. Imagine the party hearing noises in a inn at night, only to find a ogre crammed into the attic, enjoying some tea.

Objects hold a lot of power in fables, it seems the older something if the more powerful it gets. Items don't need to be made of elven steel to do more damage, as long as they have history, such as being the blade every rightful king has held.

Finally, in fables, creatures are much more unique, or at least people are more likely to name the monsters that bump in the night. A goblin isn't just a goblin, some common thing, she is Wamper Threefangle, Terror of Upgang Lane.

Oh wait, in epic fantasy gods are usually Greek like, with a pantheon of gods that control the universe far above mortals. But in fables there are usually lots of small gods, many overlapping in abilities, think Lady of the Lake not Venus, think Pan not Mother Nature. These mini-deities can be beaten by smart mortals, in fact in fables even larger gods like Death can be tricked, if only once.
#5
tom_kalbfus
Jul 14, 2008 16:06:50 Be careful not to elevate the Greek Deities too much, when we see the word "God" we tend to think too much about our all powerful Christian God, not the more limited Greek deities. I think its more interesting to play a setting where Gods can do wrong and can make mistakes despite their power. Even the typical D&D Gods are much more powerful that the original Greek Legends had them. When you spoke to a god, you spoke to that God, not his Avatar.
#6
inkblot
Jul 14, 2008 17:18:52 I second everything Admiral_Lourve said about folkloric settings.

In addition, I suggest you look up the work of Vladimir Propp to get a feel for folkloric plots.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 natanax Jul 09, 2008 16:40:06	I've been debating running a campaign where the PC's used to be epic heroes but have had their memories stolen by a devious villain with dastardly plans. This is sort of a "folkloric fantasy" set in an ambiguous and fantastical version of the real world. The feel I want to go for is something like "The Adventures of the Baron Manchausen", "The Fall", "Big Fish" or "Tall Tale: The Adventures of Pecos Bill." Anyone have any tips on how I would do this?
#2 tom_kalbfus Jul 10, 2008 9:59:56	How about this as a start, have the characters reside in the non-magical "real world" for a time and have them discover a portal to the magical "alternate Earth". Lets say they had heroic "doubles" in the magical Earth that were killed by the dastardly villain, and when the heros step through the portal they inherit the powers and abilities their legendary doubles had. Otherwise the Characters had their memories erased and were given identities in the real world for their own safety, but then finds that now the magical world once again needs their abilities and heroism (ala Harry Potter).
#3 gorditobandito Jul 11, 2008 22:55:41	an important aspect of folklore is that the villain (and all the cronies) 99% of the time do not simply try to overpower the heroes. they are anywhere from mischievous to meticulous mastermind but if there is a straight up fight they should have either an advantage from the environment, traps and hazards/the high ground etc, or it should be a strategic choice that the mastermind has chosen to throw away some of his assets to the players (insubordination for instance)
#4 admiral_lourve Jul 12, 2008 11:06:04	The main difference between epic fantasy and fables is that magic is rare and extremely powerful in fantasy, but in fables animals often talk, every old woman has a spell or too, not just inhuman hags, in fact spells can be made just with ingredients in a cauldren if you know how... Fairies and goblins put small blessings on families, evil fairy godmothers put princess to sleep... Thats something else about magic, in epic fantasy magic is like a science that powerful wizards use as a tool, but in fables it's more a extention of ones will. Anger creates angery magic, and magic itself seems more alive. Take the old Jewish fable of The Golem, when the golem was left alone it went on a rampage though the streets! Magic is wild and emotional. What else? Ah. Everything, including the heroes of the tale, have other faces and forms. A raven is just a bird, but when a story unfolds and it needs to be; it is also death, or a trickster, or a guide. Perhaps all three. Every ugly old hermit is also a goddess. Dragons are not regal, they are inbodiments of nature, a volcano could be a dragon at times. In fables characters are not people, they are concepts given form. In fables the land is much more alive, hills sigh, mountains laugh, houses walk on chicken legs. A city is as active as a jungle, with easily as many animals. Brilliantly coloured insects scuttle about the walls, owls peer at people as they stand on the street lamps, stallions race down the roads and tribes of brownies, boggarts, tomtes and even giant trolls live in the corners that no one else uses. Imagine the party hearing noises in a inn at night, only to find a ogre crammed into the attic, enjoying some tea. Objects hold a lot of power in fables, it seems the older something if the more powerful it gets. Items don't need to be made of elven steel to do more damage, as long as they have history, such as being the blade every rightful king has held. Finally, in fables, creatures are much more unique, or at least people are more likely to name the monsters that bump in the night. A goblin isn't just a goblin, some common thing, she is Wamper Threefangle, Terror of Upgang Lane. Oh wait, in epic fantasy gods are usually Greek like, with a pantheon of gods that control the universe far above mortals. But in fables there are usually lots of small gods, many overlapping in abilities, think Lady of the Lake not Venus, think Pan not Mother Nature. These mini-deities can be beaten by smart mortals, in fact in fables even larger gods like Death can be tricked, if only once.
#5 tom_kalbfus Jul 14, 2008 16:06:50	Be careful not to elevate the Greek Deities too much, when we see the word "God" we tend to think too much about our all powerful Christian God, not the more limited Greek deities. I think its more interesting to play a setting where Gods can do wrong and can make mistakes despite their power. Even the typical D&D Gods are much more powerful that the original Greek Legends had them. When you spoke to a god, you spoke to that God, not his Avatar.
#6 inkblot Jul 14, 2008 17:18:52	I second everything Admiral_Lourve said about folkloric settings. In addition, I suggest you look up the work of Vladimir Propp to get a feel for folkloric plots.