The Wise Frogg's Roleplaying Report

The Wise Frogg's Roleplaying Report #1
by Froggotten (Chris B.)

FOREWORD

This is the very first issue of THE WISE FROGG'S ROLEPLAYING REPORT! THis is my first newsletter about roleplaying of all sorts, from the Actaul Tabletops to Virtual Tabletops, from the classic commercial products like DND to the free-to-use-and-play ZODIAC Final Fantasy RPG (which I must say is my favorite, and I'll refer to it alot during many future issues.)
I'm creating this newletter-type text document to help beginner gamemasters get through the hassles of their first session and veteran gamers who would like a little spice and flare to add to their character. What ever level you are at in roleplaying experience, I hope I can provide you with the answers you seek throughout my issues forthcoming.
Well, Enough chit-chat, Let's get to the Issue #1's topic.

Issue #1: Good Games, Good Times: How to Create Wonderful Adventures

Some of my most memorable adventures that I have either participated in or created had a few things in common that makes me think about them as 'Good Games and Good Times'. These traits, whether by me or some other GM, were used to bring the players and their characters closer together and put them where they had to think beyond the boundaries of convientional roleplaying. These traits are Team Tactics, Unexpected Surprises, Mystery and Mayhem, The Path Not Taken, and finally, Trickster Combat.

(I) Team Tactics: This trait is when there is an obstacle that the players cannot conquer alone. This obstacle requires thought to solve, and skill to get past. The most determined of characters will failure if they try to get past the obstacle, but with a little help from their friends, whether they be strong, smart, or just some average joe with a few skills, they can pass the test and move on with the adventure. An example of this is a sleeping giant that blocks the mountain path to a dungeon rumored to contain the Phoenix Elixer the PCs need to get to bring back their dying friend. The Giant itself has rock hard skin, and according to villagers, is a light sleeper. He also has a large pillow stuffed in each ear. There's another path, but where it leads is unknown to the players, and they can hear the sounds of strange creatures coming from up that path. One of the players also has with them some explosives. Another player has skills in rock sculpting and still has his tools with them. The steep wall that the giant is sleeping against is made of layers, and has a few grabable ledges. What to do? TEAMWORK! Have the best climber shimmy up the facade of the sheer cliff and get to the top. If there are no monsters up there, have him/her tie a rope around the nearest appropriate object and let the others climb up. When they reach the top, they could find a very large an blunt wedge of rock pointing over the giant. What to do? Have the rock sculptor sharpen the stone, then let Mr. Boomboom the explosives expert plant some explosives near the rock and light it and run for the nearest safe cover. When the stuff explodes, it breaks the wedge rock off the mountain and pierces the heart of the giant, or goes through his head, or some other gruesome coup de grace that will allow the characters the ability of a safe passage. Becuase they worked as a team mostly, they were able to solve the problem and get through the obstacle.

(II) Unexpected Surprises: Everyone loves surprises, unless, of course, they appear as traps from a usually benevolent GM. Even if that's the case, it's an unexpected surprise, and it'll keep the characters on their toes from that point on and get them to make use of their Remove Trap skills. Another unexpected surprise could be a young woman chained inside a dungeon. There is also other chains around her. She pleas to the PCs to set her free. What they don't know is that the woman is the goddess of oblivion and torment. When some of the characters try to set her free, the other chains in the room wrap about their weapons and their bodies, and begins to drain the life out of them. The remaining PCs have to fight her and defeat her quickly before their friends are drained of all lifeforce. What seems to be a rescue attempt for the damsel in distress turns out to be a emergency rescue for the characters by the few characters. This unexpected surprise can probably create a TPK if the strongest of the characters are captured. But the players should respect this, becuase you are the GM.

(III) Mystery and Mayhem: "There's something fishy about this town. Everyone seems to be casting us evil looks. On top of that, I found a ritual knife laying in my bed this morning with a note that said 'Leave or become our power'. I'm telling you, something is wrong about this place…"
Stuff like this puts a little mystery into the game while putting the players in a awkward state of mind. Maybe the town is brainwashed into being evil servants. Maybe they are part of a demon summoning cult that wants the characters as ritual sacrifices. That's the 'Mystery' part of the adventure, when the characters guess about what the mystery could be. The 'Mayhem'? The town is out for their blood, or there's a demon watching their every single move, and is planning on taking them while they sleep to it's lair to sacrifice. When the characters wake, they are on an altar a few seconds away from being sacrificed.

(IV) The Path not Taken: This trait in a campaign is when a character figures out a way to do something that neither the other players not the gamemaster has thought of originally. Let me take you back to my first campaign in ZODIAC, called Fortress of the Starpath. The character's were in a forest covered in demonic mist that corrupts souls into becoming evil and hellbent on destroying everything. The party discovered early on that Gaian Water can cure those who have the demonic bile infesting their bodies. The party were engaged with Forest Keeper, a guardian of flora and fauna in the world of Halcyon, who blamed the characters for 'poisoning her forest', though she was poisoned by the mist, too. Well, one player, whose character was named Pence Grooble, but was really a man named Seravy Smith, figured out a way to cure Forest Keeper while attacking. He was a comedian, complete with a water-squirting flower (which acted more like a high pressure water hose in this case). He jumped up on a stump and screamed. "HEY LADY! Guess what!? I'm the guy that POISONED YOUR FOREST!" This caused Forest Keeper to go attack him directly. Pence had other plans. He fired his Water Flower at Forest Keeper…the Water Flower contained Gaian Water. Forest Keeper gulped mouthful after mouthful of water until she passed out. When she came to, she puked out the demonic bile and was cured. I hadn't thought that any of the characters would try out such a tactic, but it worked to their advantage. This was an example of a Path Not Taken.

(V) Trickster Combat: If straight combat is too simple for your players, try putting them in Trickster Combat, or combat that requires a certain trick to defeat the opposing force properly. This can be anything from changing weaknesses each round, to being immnune to all Elemental damage, but not to non-elemental damage, or even defeating it before the timer hits 0 (Such as DSentence, but with longer duration (the end of 4th Round, for example)). Combats like these adds a bit of a challenge to fighting the monster. Maybe the enemy attacks with a technique that drops all characters to 1 HP, and then attacks normally for 3 turns, then uses the nearly fatal attack again. Stuff like this gives an edge to combat, putting the players in survival mode. "Hurry, throw a mass healing spell over here!" "Boost up our Strength, buffer, because we're barely doing anything to this guy!" "He switches defenses! Hurry, hit him with your super-duper Hadoken!" Stuff like this can be fun for both players and GM.

There you have it, FIVE things that makes adventures more fun. Even though the Path Not Taken cannot be planned, It still is included becuase you never know when a character will come up with an idea that works so very well with the situation.


Comments, Concerns, or just want to talk about roleplaying, send me a message! You can eith sent it to my email account (moc.oohay|ggorfgibeht#moc.oohay|ggorfgibeht) or sent it via private message here on wikidot. If You want a specific topic covered, tell me. I haven't played all RPGs, but I can always ask around. you can too. well, that's the end of this issue for now. Hope to see you next time.

Sincerely
THE BIG FROGG A.K.A. THE WISE FROGG
Froggotten Silvertongue

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