Running a Game
Let's face it, when it comes to Tabletop Role-Playing Games, there's always the one thing that the game relies on (with some game exceptions such as Warhammer, sorta) having a story precreated for the players to use. This is specifically in any RPG where a person is deemed the 'D/GM' or Dungeon/Game Master. Sometimes, this can be easily remedied, as for nearly every game that requires a Dungeon Master, there is almost always several pre-made adventures (or even series of adventures, known as campaigns) that the GM can use to save on time.
But sometimes, that is not the case. Sometimes, the GM will have the large task of building an entire campaign from scratch. Speaking from some experience, this is no small task. This one person must, in essence, craft an entire world. Now, a GM -could- simply plot a line of encounters of tasks for their players to follow, but what this leads to is the players feeling as though they have no real choice in the world. But crafting an entire world is an ardous task, a feat which may seem impossible to a casual player.
Granted, there are some GMs out there that have a natural talent for this. They can weave worlds seemingly out of thin air, and come up with an equally complex plot to immerse their players into. They have a spark of creativity that has been honed through years of practise, whether it be writing stories, drawing, etc. But, there are some who wish to build an epic world right from the get-go. Maybe they have plans to have the players, at some point, fight a reincarnation of an ancient dead god, built for the players to be at max level. But you can't simply start some players at max level and fight a god. Well, ok, technically, you could, but then there's no real tension or drama as to what's going on.
Yeah, a cool villain, but not something to immediately throw at a player
Everyone wishes to do this though, they want to build an epic world, but have no idea how they can do such a thing. Fortunately, there is in fact, a way to at least find a starting point, or at least find a way to have some consistency - pick a theme. Dungeom Mastering can be a very difficult task if you let it get to you, but find a theme with several elements to it, and you can easily find a way to build around it.
Suppose for instance, you want to come up with a series of encounters that will lead your party through a few levels, but are unsure whether to pursue any sort of continuity or not. Pick something thematic - whether it be a previously established set of characters, or an old set of concepts and beliefs. To name a few examples, let's think for a bit.
Let's say you need a trio of enemies to oppose your party, but you don't wish them to die immediately. Well, in several games, beliefs, etc. the 'rule of three' applies. Take a hint from Zelda and have one villain sporting an unusual amount of bravado, one of them a mage with years of experience, and the third a boisterous bruiser to shake the party's cage - Voila, you've just made a trio of villains using the Triforce theme - Power, Wisdom and Courage.
Yes, you too can use this for evil instead of good.
Maybe you need more though? Group of four villains for instance? Well, the classic elements of Fire, Wind, Water and Earth might work in that case. Earth could be a man shrouded in mystery, using poison to his advantage, Water could be a sturdy, blocky defender (The ocean is vast after all), Wind could be a short-tempered lass that can - and will - blow you away, while Fire could be a man born of hellfire, with a natural sense of warm courtesy.
Nope, never heard of that idea before
There are many themes out there that can even provide several unique ideas. The Sephirot - the Tree of Life - has 11 virtues to it, some of them united among them. The Chinese Zodiac, as well as the traditional Horoscope provide 12 concepts or beings apiece to use. Perhaps the Seven Deadly Sins could be used to represent a group of characters, led by a single character - Hey, it worked for Fullmetal Alchemist. Heck - if you want to give your players a real treat, look at a Tarot deck sometime - the Major Arcana provides twenty-one unique ideas in itself, to say nothing of the court cards - Heck, this in itself worked in Persona pretty damn well just as the Personas themselves.
Just a taste of what a theme can get you.
Of course, simply having an enemy group to oppose the party is not enough, you need a reason for these people to be doing so, or even a reason to have them there in the first place. Again, that's where the wonder of themes comes into place. More likely than not, these villains are liable to be out to conquer the world. Their reasonings will be different, but overall, that's what a villain is aiming for - domination and control. The Four Elements group could be plotting to return balance to the earth by first wiping all life from it and allowing the world to start anew, with them leading the regrowth. The Tarot Cult could be seeking to bring forth the heart of the world itself (Major Arcana 22, numbered 21 on the card itself) and have the world destroyed by the power possessed by it.
Or they could summon a World Eater?
Now, you're probably wondering how simply picking a single theme will help you come up with an entire campaign. Well, that's the beauty of it. From that one theme, you yourself will be looking for ways to figure out how these characters may work, and will naturally come up with justifications for what they're doing and why. Not eveyrthing needs to be concrete though. Come up with a generalized idea for the world, and let the players fill in the extra details (things other than towns and major landmarks such as mountain ranges). You'd be surprised at how clever your players can be at times.
And most importantly, have fun while running a game - that's what we're all here for after all =p.
Let's face it, when it comes to Tabletop Role-Playing Games, there's always the one thing that the game relies on (with some game exceptions such as Warhammer, sorta) having a story precreated for the players to use. This is specifically in any RPG where a person is deemed the 'D/GM' or Dungeon/Game Master. Sometimes, this can be easily remedied, as for nearly every game that requires a Dungeon Master, there is almost always several pre-made adventures (or even series of adventures, known as campaigns) that the GM can use to save on time.
But sometimes, that is not the case. Sometimes, the GM will have the large task of building an entire campaign from scratch. Speaking from some experience, this is no small task. This one person must, in essence, craft an entire world. Now, a GM -could- simply plot a line of encounters of tasks for their players to follow, but what this leads to is the players feeling as though they have no real choice in the world. But crafting an entire world is an ardous task, a feat which may seem impossible to a casual player.
Granted, there are some GMs out there that have a natural talent for this. They can weave worlds seemingly out of thin air, and come up with an equally complex plot to immerse their players into. They have a spark of creativity that has been honed through years of practise, whether it be writing stories, drawing, etc. But, there are some who wish to build an epic world right from the get-go. Maybe they have plans to have the players, at some point, fight a reincarnation of an ancient dead god, built for the players to be at max level. But you can't simply start some players at max level and fight a god. Well, ok, technically, you could, but then there's no real tension or drama as to what's going on.
Yeah, a cool villain, but not something to immediately throw at a player
Everyone wishes to do this though, they want to build an epic world, but have no idea how they can do such a thing. Fortunately, there is in fact, a way to at least find a starting point, or at least find a way to have some consistency - pick a theme. Dungeom Mastering can be a very difficult task if you let it get to you, but find a theme with several elements to it, and you can easily find a way to build around it.
Suppose for instance, you want to come up with a series of encounters that will lead your party through a few levels, but are unsure whether to pursue any sort of continuity or not. Pick something thematic - whether it be a previously established set of characters, or an old set of concepts and beliefs. To name a few examples, let's think for a bit.
Let's say you need a trio of enemies to oppose your party, but you don't wish them to die immediately. Well, in several games, beliefs, etc. the 'rule of three' applies. Take a hint from Zelda and have one villain sporting an unusual amount of bravado, one of them a mage with years of experience, and the third a boisterous bruiser to shake the party's cage - Voila, you've just made a trio of villains using the Triforce theme - Power, Wisdom and Courage.
Yes, you too can use this for evil instead of good.
Maybe you need more though? Group of four villains for instance? Well, the classic elements of Fire, Wind, Water and Earth might work in that case. Earth could be a man shrouded in mystery, using poison to his advantage, Water could be a sturdy, blocky defender (The ocean is vast after all), Wind could be a short-tempered lass that can - and will - blow you away, while Fire could be a man born of hellfire, with a natural sense of warm courtesy.
Nope, never heard of that idea before
There are many themes out there that can even provide several unique ideas. The Sephirot - the Tree of Life - has 11 virtues to it, some of them united among them. The Chinese Zodiac, as well as the traditional Horoscope provide 12 concepts or beings apiece to use. Perhaps the Seven Deadly Sins could be used to represent a group of characters, led by a single character - Hey, it worked for Fullmetal Alchemist. Heck - if you want to give your players a real treat, look at a Tarot deck sometime - the Major Arcana provides twenty-one unique ideas in itself, to say nothing of the court cards - Heck, this in itself worked in Persona pretty damn well just as the Personas themselves.
Just a taste of what a theme can get you.
Of course, simply having an enemy group to oppose the party is not enough, you need a reason for these people to be doing so, or even a reason to have them there in the first place. Again, that's where the wonder of themes comes into place. More likely than not, these villains are liable to be out to conquer the world. Their reasonings will be different, but overall, that's what a villain is aiming for - domination and control. The Four Elements group could be plotting to return balance to the earth by first wiping all life from it and allowing the world to start anew, with them leading the regrowth. The Tarot Cult could be seeking to bring forth the heart of the world itself (Major Arcana 22, numbered 21 on the card itself) and have the world destroyed by the power possessed by it.
Or they could summon a World Eater?
Now, you're probably wondering how simply picking a single theme will help you come up with an entire campaign. Well, that's the beauty of it. From that one theme, you yourself will be looking for ways to figure out how these characters may work, and will naturally come up with justifications for what they're doing and why. Not eveyrthing needs to be concrete though. Come up with a generalized idea for the world, and let the players fill in the extra details (things other than towns and major landmarks such as mountain ranges). You'd be surprised at how clever your players can be at times.
And most importantly, have fun while running a game - that's what we're all here for after all =p.