So, the insanely exciting thing is that last night our RPG group spent time pulling together some characters for the Infinite Worlds campaign. Today I can begin the task of starting to create the first adventures for these new characters.
What Have We Got?
Check out these three character concepts:
- Naginata-wielding medieval Japanese base-runner with the ability to run like the wind and shift through solid walls.
- Film-noir gumshoe Private Detective from the 1930s with psionic psychometric powers, allowing him post-cognitive flashes to help him solve the case.
- Post-apocalyptic survivor used to surviving in the now-overrun with real jungle Urban Jungle, with psionic healing and a stash of cool gizmos.
All of these heroes enter the not-so-distant future "Baseline" world in which our own alternate Van Zandt has discovered how to cross-dimensions and visit the many alternate realities... for fun, profit and adventure.
Each of the characters has uncovered The Secret from visits to their own alternate Earth and, by hook or by crook, been brought cross-reality to serve Infinity Inc. and explore further.
What These Heroes Told Me
These hero concepts tell me quite a bit about what my players want from their game. Most players seem to miss this point, but every choice made in character creation is a message sent to the GM about what kind of game you want to play.
The super-fast and jump-through-walls warrior from feudal Japan gives me clues that Player #1 would like some combat, chase scenes, and some buildings to penetrate. This player has meticulously built and tweaked his hero to the optimum, indicating that cool powers and schticks matter to him... something to bear in mind as I build NPCs and provide character development.
Player #2 wants mysteries and some hard rain. His PI hero is handy with a .38 pistol but this is not the priority: investigation, using those psychometric powers and doing things "by the book" suit him down to the ground. The player has also chosen "Mundane Background", a disadvantage that means he's ill-prepared to deal with weirdness and horror... and which tells me that the player wants just those things in the game.
Finally, the survivalist character from Player #3 is a supporting role, with the psi-healing, mixed with some useful skills and a background that suggests this player would like to explore the psychological impact of the post-apocalypse. This hero sparked a group-wide approval of entering some post-apocalyptic settings, where this player clearly wants to forage, hunt and... well, fight for survival.
It's vital that I pay attention to the characters that have been created, giving each one a role in each story that we tell. Good job, then, that I have a nifty adventure idea already that blends doom, rain, action and weirdness into one exciting story-arc.
What Next?
I'm going to sit down with a pack of coloured pens, a big sheet o' paper and some free time to sketch out a mind-map of my ideas for the first story arc. Once the ideas are flowing I'll cull them into some shape and start to build the scenes and NPCs that we need for the first story. Once I'm ready, it'll be important to check back to the character concepts and make sure that everyone has a role to play.
What's really cool is that, following a fairly wacky suggestion, the group I used to play D&D with has decided to try something new... and the guys seem pretty willing to experiment with the freedom that GURPS gives them.
Wish me luck... and, for God's sake, get that parachronic projector up and ready.
Game on!
