Mystery of the Yellow Robed Man

Once upon a time in Hobbington, an ancient and sturdy fortress-town built on a plateau along the side of Mount Zatok, there lived three young men who wished to become adventurers. So they joined the new Adventurer's Guild and sought training there. One was a Hobbit from the wealthy part of town, by the name of Ishcandar, one was a poor farm boy named Hermel, who had come up from the village at the base of the Mountain to make his way in the world, and the last was yet another Hobbit by the name Lido who was not satisfied with his father's meager life as village tanner and wished to achieve fame and fortune for himself.

The old Guild Master, who was recently arrived in Hobbington from the Guild Hall in far off Glendale, decided to accept the three young adventurers and give them training, after which they would be considered novice rank. He thought, when they came in for their initial inquiries that they showed some promise, not so much for their physical attributes, which were not necessarily so impressive all told, but for their wit and spirit of adventure. So he accepted their applications and put them to work training in the Adventure School there. Two of the young men decided not to join the Guild formally, but instead chose to learn their skills as Freemen, while the third joined as a full member and entered into the Thieving Class. They each wished to learn the skills of thieves, however Hermel also chose to learn a mystical healing power called Earth Healing. They studied there very hard for several months and finally graduated their courses and so were ready to begin taking missions from the Guild Master, an elderly pepper haired and rather grizzly fighter-sage. His name was Rothmon, a keen eyed, and solemn fellow who took his responsibilities seriously.

One day Rothmon and his two fellow Guild Masters arrived from a journey taken outside the town, and they seemed very excited about something. And so the three young men followed them, furtively as possible, to the library and listened in on their discussion. As it turned out, Rothmon had gone to investigate a report from some villagers who said that several farmers had been killed by "devils" on the north side of Zatok Mountain. When they went there to see, they followed three-toed tracks up along a difficult trail and came to a waterfall, behind which they found a cave. When they entered the cave they saw an iron bridge crossing a river that led to some caverns deep within the mountain. At this point they decided to return and plan out their approach before proceeding and this was what they were discussing in the Guild Library.

When Rothmon noticed that the three boys had secretly been listening in on what the Guild Masters were discussing amongst themselves he was not angry, but instead invited them into the discussion, and explained the situation. He told them that they would be mounting an expedition to explore the cave, but it would probably be too dangerous for them, since "devils", or whatever the three-toed creatures were, might inhabit the cave, and they were really novices in the adventure game after all. He offered the boys several other possible missions inside Hobbington that would be safer. They were relieved, as "devils" didn't strike them as something they felt ready to tackle at any rate. He explained that the Guild's purpose was to acquire new information and catalog it in the Guild Library, adding that they would be paid fairly for any maps, or detailed information of interest that they should discover during the course of their adventures. The higher the quality of the information the more they would be rewarded. He then went on to describe several possible missions, and the boys chose the one that seemed the safest, since they were newly trained and really had no practical experience, yet. Better safe than sorry, they agreed, and so it was settled.

So they went off to find a mysterious man wearing yellow robes and a yellow turban who had caused a strange disturbance at the Palace Gate the day before, and this mission was named "The Mysterious Yellow Robed Man". They headed off immediately. Along the way toward the Palace Gate where they thought they might find information about the mystery man, while passing through the market, Ishcandar, who was always looking for an opportunity to practice his new skills, decided to try to pick the pocket of an old blind man that they were passing. Having succeeded at cutting the old man's leather purse from his belt without being noticed in the jostle and bustle of the crowd, he was quite pleased with himself, and offered his two friends an equal share of his victory. He was a wealthy Hobbit and had no real need for money, but in the pouch were three iron pieces, and so he gave each of his friends one and kept the third for himself.

Hermel, who received an Iron piece from his friend with a courteous bow, then suddenly turned about, saying he had left his bag behind and would catch up with them momentarily. He ran back to the market and seeing the old man sitting on his chair by the side of a market stall walked to him and and gave him three iron pieces, the exact amount that his friend had stolen. The old blind man was very appreciative. As it turned out he was a fortune teller, and so he offered to give the boy a reading of one card. Hermel, not especially superstitious, but humoring the old fellow, reached out and took one of the cards from the deck at random, and it was revealed to be the card of the Dragon. "This is a powerful card indeed", the old man croaked. "The Earth Force of the Dragon will go with you," he concluded with one hand raised and a slight bow of his head. With a quiet chuckle to himself the boy thanked him and ran off to catch up with his friends, most certainly none-the-wiser.

The boys sought information in the wealthy area of town known as "The Wall District" that bordered Palace gate. They asked a burly looking man with a great black beard if he had heard any news of the strange occurrence from the day before, and he said his daughter had seen the entire affair. And so he called down his daughter who happened to be a very lovely young woman named Elizabeth, and she gave them more information about the man in the yellow robes and turban.

"He was amazingly fast and moved in a very strange way", she said. So much so that the guards at the gate were unable to capture him at all, or even lay a single hand on the fellow no matter how hard they tried. No one was injured but after that the yellow robed man mocked the guards declaring that they were completely useless, and with a loud laugh, he vanished into the crowd in the direction of the Main Market. The boys surmised, being as the man was a stranger from outside Hobbington, that he might be staying at the Fountain Inn, on Market Street. Sure enough when they got there the yellow robed man was sitting at a table in the foyer of the inn, enjoying a lovely coconut-banana cocktail, the kind with a little paper umbrella in it. They decided to send Hermel, who wished to practice his skill, to speak with the man, and offer him some meager information in the hopes of befriending him and finding out more. He did this, but did not make a great impression on the man, who told him that his name was Wutong of the Golden Plain, but otherwise gave him little to go on. He indeed moved in a very strange manner, with sudden gestures, and wide eyed glances and he had a rather peculiar habit of suddenly scratching his short cropped yellow beard like monkey. He was very strange indeed. But Wutong offered little information about himself or his intentions, and seemed to be neither afraid, nor concerned when Hermel explained that people in the town had heard of his exploits and were looking to find out who he was and what he was doing in the town. He only sat and listened intently, smiling widely, nodding his head emphatically, and giving out the occasional laugh at what Hermel was saying.

The boys decided to have two of them return to the Guild to tell Rothmon they had found the yellow robed man at the Inn, while Ischancar kept Wutong company at the table, drinking and trying to find out more information about him. However, it was just the reverse, as Wutong asked Ishcancar quite a few questions about the Palace, its surroundings, and whether or not the boy knew of any tunnel or way into the Palace other than the Palace Gate. Ischancar, though from The Heights, which was the wealthiest area of Hobbington and situated at the base of the Palace, didn't know of any tunnels that would lead into it from below. And so he drank merrily and babbled on with increasing joviality until the others returned.

Rothmon, when he heard the news came to the Inn very quickly, introduced himself politely, and began speaking with Wutong in a strange language that the boys did not understand. In the end both Wutong and Rothmon had learned something of one another, but they could not come to an agreement it seemed, and so Rothmon left with a final warming that any attempt to enter the Palace would be fraught with danger and cause a great deal of mischief. He would not help, nor would he interfere either. With this Rothmon thanked the boys for their help in finding the yellow robed mystery man, and told them they would be rewarded in the morning, and left with his broad brown cloak swirling behind him as he exited the Inn. When the boys looked back around they found that Wutong had vanished from sight.

The boys were puzzled by these events, but as they had completed their first Guild mission, they felt quite pleased with themselves, and so celebrated over a good meal and a few rounds of ale.

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Previous Episode: Homeward Bound - Part 5

Next Episode: The Ghost Fish of Dunn's Brook

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What Good Are RPGs, Anyway?

RPGs as Escapism

Life in the new millennium is fraught with stresses produced by a rapidly changing, often shocking, and at times highly dangerous environment. Stress and danger, however, are not new to modernity. The notion that we would want, and perhaps need, a mental escape from life's stress is not new either, as many have postulated the same through the ages, and pretty much most forms of entertainment are to varying degrees forms of escapism. Added relatively recently to the catalogue of forms of entertainment known to man was the Role Playing Game.  A wonderful invention, indeed.   And clearly, RPGs serve the need for escapism, and this may even be its primary and most useful function.

However, if the RPG is merely a form of escapism then it could be argued that it is no better than doing drugs, rendering one impotent in the real world in proportion to the level of escape achieved. Escapism could be a more than a mere vacation from harsh reality - it could become an unhealthy, and ultimately anti-social, civilization-diminishing addiction. One might even argue that people who spend their time escaping reality will not help to resolve the problems of the real world, and therefore it not only provides no benefit to or enhancement of civilization, but is completely counter productive. Of course, to make that argument is to argue against all forms of escapist entertainment, of which RPGs are merely one.

If escapism is all that they really amount to then it casts a rather gloomy pall over the whole concept of the RPG and I think I might be persuaded to oppose it on principal. However, I am of the opinion that civilization requires alert, energetic and engaged minds to maintain and advance, and that a certain amount of escapism is actually good for people.  It is also interesting to note what Tolkien once said on this subject. 

"Fantasy is escapist, and that is its glory. If a soldier is imprisioned by the enemy, don't we consider it his duty to escape?. . .If we value the freedom of mind and soul, if we're partisans of liberty, then it's our plain duty to escape, and to take as many people with us as we can!"

S. Lewis was also fond of humorously remarking that "the usual enemies of escape are ... jailers".  I am of the opinion that escapism is actually a healthy and life-enhancing activity, but like everything else, can be taken too far.  So for this purpose RPGs are pretty darn good.   Escape to a Fantasy World for an afternoon, and enjoy adventures that would otherwise be impossible to you.  It's fun.  And, if not taken to an extreme, good for your mind.

RPG: Some Rationals for Justification

It seems to me that there is fundamentally more to RPGs than mere escapism. And for this reason I should like to argue in favor of considering what use RPGs may have for the advancement of individuals and civilization as a whole, and in so doing deflect some of the spurious claims made against RPGs, and attempt to address some of the legitimate concerns which have surfaced.

The principal rationales that come to my mind that could justify the existence and popularity of RPGs are:

• That it is necessary that some time be spent in mental escape from dull or harsh realities in order to rejuvenate the mind.
• That it is advisable that some portion of the population that is not able to tackle the actual real issues of the world be offered some means of mental escape least they suffer an incapacitating crisis of stress.
• That RPGs are not mere escapism but provide a useful function for the advancement of individual mental capabilities, and thereby civilization in general.

Lets consider each of these in turn.

RPG As Mental Spa

To the first point, it is entirely possible that modern stresses and challenges to the psyche are of such intensity that some form of temporary mental escape may be considered a useful mechanism for the rejuvenation of the mind. One might call into question, however, if RPGs are the best mechanism for this effect, as meditation may be much preferred for this purpose. RPGs, after all, can be quite stressful… it is not like watching a field of flowers grow to have your beloved Character threatened to be mashed by the claws of an outraged and hostile red dragon. So if RPGs themselves can produce stress, albeit of a different nature than “real life”, will they really provide a rejuvenating function? This, doubtless, would depend on the nature of the RPG being played in the same way that some movies produce peaceful and happy feelings, while others leave one in a state of noxious anxiety.

However, let us suppose that some RPGs may result in mental rejuvenation. We might think of such RPG games as something like a spa for the mind; a mental workout, which in the end leaves one refreshed and ready to come back and tackle the problems of the real world with renewed vigor. Those seeking mental rejuvenation would naturally gravitate towards such RPG worlds. Which is not to say that all RPG worlds would provide this effect, but that RPGs in general have the potential to do so. If this is the case then a reasonable argument can be made for the potential, if not actual, usefulness of RPGs along these lines.

RPG As Bread & Circus

The second point, that some portion of the population should and must be offered means of mental escape from life's harsh realities is another possible rational. It may be that mass escapism is a requirement of a healthy society. Thus, for those grinding against a harsh reality in such a way as to cause themselves more harm than good, an alternative is available.  RPGs could be seen as a means by which those who can not directly effect the course of affairs of the world may find an escape from the real-world stress, and for them that may be a valuable service. As such, RPGs may be thought of as merely another form of entertainment, like a TV show, or a movie or a novel.

Conversely, one could dispute this by arguing that if everyone did fully participate in the solving of the issues of our time that we could achieve even greater heights of civilization. In this case, escapism, we would argue, would merely be a means by which the masses could be lulled into complacency and denuded of moral and social vigor. The RPG might be considered a form of mental opium, and the argument for its use, like that of the Bread & Circus of Rome, could be construed as a means by which those in power could seek to keep the masses from actively participating in the real world. While this indeed would be deplorable, it would be no more so than any other form of modern entertainment. In fact, were we to accept this argument, we would have to consider the RPG as merely an extension of already existing forms of Bread & Circus in every form of entertainment we have ever had as a civilization.   That seems absurd, and so I think this argument fails the "reasonable people would agree" test.

However, one could imagine Virtual-Reality Massive Online Role-Playing Games (VR-MORG)s of the not too distant future, which may become so “realistic” and graphically addictive that millions play them in order to escape an otherwise dull or grim reality. A world ruled by techno-elites in which the VR-MORG version of RPGs could be used to produce socio-political lethargy in the masses. Perhaps we are already beginning to see this effect in the players of MORGs already present online. The imagination staggers and quails before a vision of millions upon millions of glassy-eyed VR-MORG addicts wearing their Sense-Around Helmets, completely sedated by a virtual fantasy landscape outside of which they are subjected to the humiliation of utter and hopeless defeat in the real world.   The ultimate in divide and conquer.  There was, actually, a Star-Gate episode I saw that posited this exact scenario.

I think we should all glare in horror at this possibility. Yet it is one possibility that must be noted, accounted for, and summarily terminated before it can take root. Nor does it mean that just because such a possiblity exists that we should eliminate RPGs, as some pessemistic far-thinkers might conclude.  Would it not be preferable to seek to find their benefits and encourage them toward better more life-affirming implementations?  By advancing superior alternatives and conceptions, we could prevent the RPG from evolving in the dread direction.  Naturally, it will be up to game designers of the future to determine how to make RPGs life and civilization affirming, rather than the opposite.

RPG As Mind Enhancing Pursuit

Conversely, this brings us to the third point. What positive gain might be had from the RPG, and how might the RPG be used to advance civilization rather than undermine and destroy it? Before I explore that possibility let’s step back for a few moments and review what the RPG is in essence.

I would argue that children who play Cops and Robbers, or Cowboys and Indians (and presumably in the middle ages, Knights and Knaves, and in ancient times Warriors and Savages, etc), are in fact role-playing, without the name, and without the organization that usually attends a modern, formal RPG. The act of pretending to be, and performing with ones childhood playmates like a Cowboy is in and of itself role-playing. What the RPG does, that Cowboys and Indians does not, is assign specific rules to encounters, provides an adjudication method that resolves the actions, and is more complex in that it also calls for, relative to the imaginary play of children, a certain amount of knowledge, organization, and skill.

Furthermore, I would suggest that games, first and foremost, from a broad sociological perspective, are tools for learning. Even in the animal kingdom we see that games constitute an essential learning tool. Cubs play at hunting, and learn from those experiences. Children play at being Cops and Robbers and learn from those experiences. What children learn by playing Cops and Robbers? Physical skills, social interaction skills, moral lessons, tactics, team play, problem solving, and of course, how to use their imaginations. All of which provides substantial benefits to the individuals and society as a whole.  It is perfectly natural, and we as mammals have been doing exactly this kind of role-playing-for-learning for millions of years. 

But moreover, and foremost, games, and RPGs in particular, enhance the imagination, without which it would be impossible to create new innovations and perpetuate the advance of civilization. By immersing players in imaginary settings and providing them with adventurous problems to solve, RPGs can be used as a tool to teach organizational, social, and moral lessons. Or rather, the very act of playing a well constructed RPG would by its nature teach such lessons. Depending on the quality of the RPG it can combine a great number of games into a cohesive and comprehensive fabric.

RPGs As Morality Play

Furthermore, I would say that utilizing the role-playing aspect of RPGs, it is possible to teach various kinds of moral lessons. These kinds of lessons may best be derived from experimentation in different modes of moral behavior, which may not be within the realm of social acceptance, but would nevertheless be very instructive to the player. The most interesting capability of RPGs in this regard is the use of the (often maligned) Alignment System. The Alignment System, for those unfamiliar with the concept, posits two axis of moral reality, the Good vs. Evil Axis crossed by the Law vs. Chaos Axis. In this case, players are challenged to think along various pathways that might not be typical for them, and it gives them a chance to see what kinds of consequences are attributable to various kinds of moral behaviors.  That knowledge can be invaluable in life.  And it can be learned via a game much more safely than through life experience.

For example, a child might attempt to play a Lawful Good character, only to learn that the desire to be Lawful Good is not the same thing as achieving it, and that in fact it requires much more perseverance and determination than they supposed, but still discover that in the end it is worth the effort. Conversely, someone might play a Chaotic Evil character only to discover that in the end crime indeed does not pay. And so forth. What makes these lessons possible in the safe environment of play is the RPG game system with its rules, adjudication and consequences.

In this way RPGs can teach and enhance a wide range of skills related to morality, civics, team spirit, planning, organization, strategy, tactics and creative-innovation. It is also well known that RPGs of various kinds foster the desire to learn realms of knowledge such as history, economics, mathematics, literature, philosophy, theosophy, and linguistics, among many others.

In fact, one could reasonably argue that the RPG has the potential to do this as no other game in history because the RPG is the most advanced form of game thus far created, fusing as it does disciplines and methodologies from many other games into one. In this sense, RPGs may prove to be the ideal medium by which to teach exceedingly valuable and complex organizational, social and moral lessons. To the degree RPGs succeed in this area is the degree to which civilization would be enhanced by their presence.

In the great scheme of things, small effects in large numbers aggregate into great effects in total. Such may well prove to be the case with well crafted RPGs. The advantages gained by their players in terms of advanced life skills and mental acumen could distinctly outweigh all of the former systems of game-learning combined, thereby producing an even more advanced individual and civilization than we can readily imagine today. We should hope that such an outcome would be available to us. My contention is that we would benefit to make the effort in that direction, and show tolerance (within reason) for the lesser examples and initial disasters which are bound to afflict any new artistic medium.

RPG As New Art Form

Of course, as said, all of these benefits would be contingent on the successful creation of high quality RPGs. And one can compare this to what is involved with the creation of great literature. There are many poorly written books, but we would not wish for that reason to do without the classics that are truly great literature.  Some RPGs will be bad, many in fact, and produce less than stellar results, and poor quality games. It is inevitable and unavoidable. Some, few perhaps, crafted by genius, will be truly magnificent, artistic achievements, which in time the world would not wish to do without.

RPGs are an entirely new technique of game play. They are not themselves either good or bad. Beautiful and magnificent edifices can be created, and we should encourage it. Thus, the RPG can be seen as a new form of art.  One that can produce marvelous, elegant worlds opening the mind to vistas of the imagination hitherto unknown and teaching lessons which otherwise would be much more laborious, difficult and potentially dangerous or impossible to acquire. The number of benefits civilization might acrue from well crafted RPGs would be difficult to determine in advance, but I think it is clear that there are potentially many benefits possible.

I prefer to consider RPGs as a new and fascinating form of art and game-play with fantastic possibilities and potentialities, which our civilization has only just begun to comprehend. Games are one of the measures by which civilizations may be judged, along with artwork, architecture, literature and other mediums of communication and expression. As such, the RPG represents an advancement of the concept of Game, and is among the most complex, enriching and fantastic Game inventions to grace civilization to date, and in that sense is one of the great achievements of modern world. I advocate that we use RPGs wisely, and encourage them to proliferate and prosper.  Only in this way will all of their myriad possibilities be explored and the Great Worlds brought into being for the benefit of those who are fortunate enough to experience them, and our civilization as a whole.

Vignette: A Stone in the Forest

A friend of mine challenged me to come up with some Elthos Vignettes which are examples of the kinds of people, places, things and events that exist in my World.   So here is one of them, named "A Stone in the Forest".

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A wizened priest of Minvar, the Elkron of the Earth, came to the old forest to sit upon an ancient stone near the river.   He sat there in order to learn from the stone where the stone had come from and who was its lord.  During the three years of sitting the priest ate only once every other day and sat motionless on the stone, both day and night.  He even slept sitting.   This was so that the stone would speak to him, for stones speak very slowly and do not bide interruptions.  

It was a full fourteen days before the stone began to take notice of the little creature sitting on him.   Eventually he heard the little man’s voice calling to him, saying “who are you?”.   The stone sat for a while thinking about this.   Why would the little creature which flitted like lightning through the world be worthy of any knowledge of the great stone, whom he was.   But the little creature was persistent and the great stone saw that his heart was strong and determined.  This the old stone respected and he spoke.   The first sentence the stone spoke took three days.   And each sentence after that took a day or more, though eventually the old stone spoke more swiftly, though no single word took less than an hour.   And this is what the old stone said...

“I am Bjroknorenstienalar.”

The little creature was delighted and spent the next two days posing another question.   “Where do you come from?”

“I come from mighty mountain Bjroknorenstein.”

When the old stone saw that the little creature would listen to him, he began to consider that though the creature was small and fleeting, that knowledge of old stone would spread among the little creatures of the world, and old stone liked that idea.   So he began to sing a song of the old stone which he composed for the occasion.   The song can not be sung by human tongues,  but it’s words were as follows.

“We stones are old, and our memories are long, though not as long as the memory of the twinkling stars, who remember all.   Only the Mountain Lords speak with the stars for that is their wont, but we old stones speak to the earth and learn.  

I was born of the strife of the mighty Tectons, Gorundenor and Broekan, who began to collide many Mountain Ages ago.   Their striving caused Gorundenor to sink beneath the sea as Brokan rose high above to pierce the storm laden sky.   Near the front of the battle I was born in the fierce life giving magma of the conflict.   Such a journey as I have made you tiny creatures would not survive - not a single particle would be left to you, for on the gigantic back of Gorundenor and beneath the mighty heel of Brokan was I born of the race of true Granite and have lived long the life of a War-Stone.  

In my youth I fought in the Wars of the Magma Giants and was part of a great host led by colossal Bragknamnondor.    Beneath his banner we eventually found a fault in the foot of Brokan and by great splitting and melting and driving with the force of the Magma Giants we broke to the surface of the world and split the great Brokan’s toe, so that his toe was called Brokankarn and his wrath was great in those days.  

When we broke surface we suddenly found ourselves on the flank of a new war and fought against the Lords of the Air for a brief time but the Air Lords subdued the heat of our Magma and it was in that war that our legion was divided from the main army.  Under the banner of Morhardrahan the Strong our legion moved toward the sea upon the back of the Magma Giants and we fought there against the ocean for many an age. 

It was in latter end of those days that I was split off from my legion and stood against the sea alone, watching as the earth begin to fill with you tiny fleeting creatures which we call creatures-that-flit-like-lightning.  The ocean retreated when it fled eastward toward the rising sun.  After some time thereafter there came an age of ice which lifted me in its icy grip and moved me some great distance southward.  Then the ice retreated and I was alone on the plain but soon Ocean returned and we battled mightily once more, but there is no hope of winning a war against Ocean I have found.  

After a time a verdant forest grew round about me and many flitting creatures passed by, some as large as I was in those days, and very savage for flitting things.  These creatures were much ado about slaughter as I recall and their roaring could be heard a great ways off, and they were so large that when they walked the earth herself did tremble.

One day the Lord sent a Great Stone of Fire from the Heavens which hit the earth and made a great groaning in the world.  The sky grew dark and cold and there was again a long ice age.   And so I have watched and learned much through many an ice age since then and have journeyed far within the freezing hand of the Water Lord.

And so it is with the stones that we watch and learn and speak with the Mountain Lords and study the ways of Wind and Fire and Water that we might be warriors like the true Granite of old.  Such is the way of Stone-kind.   Now I sit here, an fat old stone and am slowly ground to dust by my old enemies the wind and the rain and have grown a nice burly head of moss and lichen.   Even so, I am old, yes, but compared with you I have a very long life ahead of me, little creature-that-flits-like-lightning.”

And when he had finished his song the old stone laughed for a good long time, for the tale was good and the ending of the song pleased him.

This conversation took many years, by the end of which time the old earth priest was very tired and hungry and returned to the temple and wrote the words of the old warrior stone in a book on such matters which can be found in the temple library to this day.

On Creating A Campaign Setting

I generally take a top down approach to designing my world, meaning that I start at the higher level and drill down where I want or expect play to actually happen.   So I will start with an area of the continent, and create the geographical environment.  I will consider terrain from the point of view of the races that will inhabit it.  What are the strategic points?   Often strategic points are located at passageways into a region, such as a mountain pass, a harbor, or on a high point overlooking a fruitful plain.   I will select several of these, in the mode of pre-history, before any races populated the region.  Wild beasts roaming there will not usually pay much attention, but later intelligent races will.   But in the meantime, there are, for the sake of this example, three locations of strategic import:  ‘The Head of the Pass’, ‘The Harbor’, and ‘The Tall Hill’.

I will then consider the avenues and barriers between them.   In this case, for my example, I think I will create a triangle of pathways since there are three strategic locations.   Between the ‘The Head of the Pass’ and ‘The Harbor’ I will have an avenue that one day will become a road but in the beginning starts out as an animal trail.  I will also add a barrier, which is a forest that may be populated later with any number of beasts, or villains.   The avenue therefore passes through the forest which sets up that pathway as having an avenue and a barrier.  I like to combine them.

Between ‘The Harbor’ and ‘The Tall Hill’ I will put another avenue.  This time I will have a river as a barrier, which at first cannot be crossed except by fording, or swimming, but later I imagine there will be a bridge built at the ford.   This avenue will be little traveled for a long time, until there is a town placed on the hill and the harbor discovered.   That may take many centuries.   So that pathway also has one avenue and one barrier.  So far so good.

Between ‘The Tall Hill’ and ‘The Head of the Pass’ I may put only a barrier to create a challenge for later and keep things interesting.  Let’s say a peat bog.   And how about a nice big mountain lake, in which dwells a monster, or perhaps a band of Nixies?  That will make for some fun adventures later.  I might even put a treasure at the bottom of the lake.  How about a rare magical gem that happens to have fallen from the mountains there?  If one day a hero should slay the lake monster, or defeat the Nixies (I have not decided which yet, and maybe I'll have both), then the gem might be found, and a new magic item for the World crafted from it.  Could happen!

So to get to ‘The Tall Hill’ from 'The Head of the Pass' one must go to ‘The Harbor’ and then cross the river, or one can dare to attempt crossing the peat bog (a bad idea, probably, unless you happen to be an an especially hearty adventurous sort).

So at this point I have this:

I am now able to begin developing a history of this region.  I can begin it quite arbitrarily, actually, by posing that there are three primary races that occupy the region.   The first comes from the West, and occupies ‘The Tall Hill’, and I’m going to say this is a hearty band of farmers who decide to start planting along the lower rim of the hill at the base of the fruited plain, wisely led by some priest of the Elkron of the Earth to do so, no doubt.   Eventually that Hill may become a Fortified City, but at first it is just a poor little hill town trying to eek out a living along the edge of the plain.

At the same time, a hero of a band of Elves living in the forest for ages is taught fishing by the Elkron of the Sea, and so decides to occupy the rocky land on the north shore of the harbor.  He and his ilk eventually create rafts to help them fish and ferry, and go on to become boat builders, and are destined to rule the seas thereabouts (unless something goes horribly wrong for them - don't laugh, it could happen). And so the Elves split into two tribes, one of the forest, and one of the sea.

On the pass, I will put two small warring tribes, say of Ogres and Trolls.   These folk are only semi-intelligent, but use a rude form of earth magic, and can hide in the ground, mostly occupying caves and waterfalls.   They're cruel and hunt anything that moves.  Fortunately for the region neither tribe is very large, and they mostly feud with one another, and leave everyone else alone.  Unless they get too darn hungry, in which case some one or a few might venture down the slopes.

On the other side of the pass is another rich land with many wonders to be discovered one day… but not for a long time, no doubt.

And so it came to pass that the Elves of the Sea met the Farmers of the Plain, and began a mutually beneficial trade of fish, and produce.   Things progressed and eventually two towns were built up nicely, Hill Town and Harbor Town.   At some point they collaborate on building a nice stone bridge over the river.  All is well.

This mutually beneficial relationship worked very nicely for a long time, until one day an ogre of ill repute, and worse manners, wandered hungry from the mountain.   First trying the peat bog, he lived a rough existence for some time, until he’d hunted all the game there.  He moved on, wretched creature, until he came to the forest, in which he dwelled for some time with his equally loathsome wife.    This began to impact the Elves as they recognized a change in the forest, and were loath to go there, since the Ogre was very cruel, and powerful, and his wife was even more so, and a mystic of evil intentions.   The northern forest began to be populated by wolves, and bats, and stinging insects, and storms gathered over it, and it became brackish and unwholesome.   It was then, finally that the Forest Elves decided it was high time to send some hero or other to rid the wood of the Ogre.  But who would dare to face such a grizzly couple as the Ogre and his wife?

And so, we have a basic setup for a Campaign.  It was not very difficult, once the groundwork had been laid, and things followed along rather easily after that.   And so, for those who wish to create their own Campaigns it is not so difficult really.  It just requires considering a few aspects of the geography, the history, what races, and adding some history.   Of course, this is a very simple and basic example, from which a lot more history and whatnot could be derived, and you can consider that the Campaign action could take place anywhere along the timeline.  Note that if you do chose to pick a middle spot in your timeline then that would give you the ability to provide foreshadowing or perhaps "prophetic" insights to the Player Characters along the way, as well.  Not a bad option, if you do so with discretion and care.

The next thing I would do to fill things out further is create the Primary Non-Player Characters of the Region.  I would consider the King of the Ogres, the King of the Trolls, the Lord of Hill Town, and the Lord of Harbor Town.   I would create Non-Player Characters for each, and their immediate families, whomever is important and plays a role in the setting, such as the Hill Town Lord’s selfish wife, or his heroic eldest son perhaps.   I would create a few colorful NPCs to fill in the towns a bit.  Some of them would be famous for something, while others would be ordinary folk, such as the corner baker, his daughter, and the local snake oil peddler, and his ilk.   And so on.

Over time once I've filled in the towns with various NPCs, and given them little histories, and some aspirations, perhaps, I would then add villains, a few monsters or really rotten people to spice things up, and then finally add the essential important artifacts over which the people squabble.   Is there hidden gold in that there Hill?  Is there a magic sword that the Elkron placed anywhere as a Seed of Destiny?   Is there a wizard who has created magical artifacts that have created troubles here and there?   Or a famous sword smith who happens to be very talented at his craft but whose dark sense of humor has infected his swords with a curse of some kind?  All of these things will get added to the setting over time.

And voila, the Campaign setting is ready, and even has something of a life of its own.   Now when the Player Characters go adventuring in the region there is an underlying layer of coherence to things, a story that is already going on beneath the immediate concerns of the Player Characters, and so the world has a much better chance of feeling ‘real’ for them than otherwise.  This is what I have found works for me.

And that’s generally how to go about creating Campaign settings, more or less.  When you want to go whole hog, you can also add mythic dimensions to your Campaign (I often try to do this) by reading classical literature, mythology, old folktales and fairytales for inspiration.  Works like a charm!  :)

Best wishes on your Campaigns!

My Selected Badges for Elthos

Ok after much hemming and hawing these are the badges that apply to my GMing style:

Story Aspects

Story - I tend to put a premium on Good Story in my world. If you Role Play your Character well, and don't take foolish chances, then I find that tends to result in better stories.  Meanwhile I try my best to build the back story based on literary sources and classical themes that tend to help bring out certain literary qualities into my game world.  I have written up my actual game stories and posted them here:  Elthos Example Games.

Drama - My games do tend to focus on interesting Characterizations and Drama, including romances, betrayals, and the great wide spectrum of human glory and folly. Definitely.

Exploration & Mystery - The essential plot lines of my world largely concern exploration, and the solving of mysteries.

Mechanics Orientation

GM Fiat - My world is not an Anarcho-Syndicalist Commune. The GM has the final say. Period.

By the Dice - I play above the table, open dice rolls, with the odds of winning stated in advance in most cases. However, that is only true for rolls where the Player Characters are involved directly. When it comes to behind the scenes things, such as whether or not a villain decides to sneak up from behind or wait until another day, I do those rolls without announcing their intent. Leaving those kinds of rolls a mystery for the Players, I find, enhances the game.

Tactical - Since I play by the Dice, it is considered good form in my world to consider the tactical situation and maximize your chances of success if you can.

Character Death - I do play by the the dice, and so Character Death is something that can definitely happen. That said, in the past, I've allowed some Characters the chance to escape Death's grip, and return from the Other World, so keep that in mind.

Run Away - Because I roll above board and stick to the outcomes indicated by the dice, and I allow for Character Death, Players are advised that sometimes discretion is indeed the better part of valor, and running away from insurmountable odds when you can is considered a sign of wisdom in my world. Of course, there is nothing wrong with a heroic death, when the end result is something worthwhile. And again, some Characters may simply feel that running away is cowardly, and so they will not do so, and thus take their chances. The odds of such Characters dying in combat is relatively high, but then again, they are more probable to be remembered as heroes by their posterity.

Use Your Brains - Player Skill is important in my world. If you can role play your Character well, then a lot of times you can make up for deficiency in particular Character abilities, work around them, or render them unnecessary. I put a premium on Role Playing over Gaming when it comes to the Story aspect of the game. Of course, that does not mean I will fudge skill rolls or allow players to succeed at skills they do not possess just to advance the story. But just like in life, play to your strengths for the best chance of success.

By the Book - I have a set of medium-weight traditionalist Character Generation rules, and relatively simple Conflict / Skills Resolution System, which I don't usually deviate from. The operative word there is 'usually'. I do not believe in *never* deviating from the rules, and so I allow for some (albeit rare) exceptions to existing rules, or modifying the rules over time when it becomes apparent that they are not balanced, or do not produce the desired effect.

Tinkering - While this may seem somewhat a contradiction to Playing by the Book, my rules are somewhat in a state of flux while I iron out the details based on actual game results (a very long process), though mostly stable, so yes, I am still in tinkering mode, and probably will continue to be for the foreseeable future.

Improvisation - I tend to improvise quite a bit on Non-Player Character descriptions, personality, and decision making. However, I will often know prior who the NPC is, what they are trying to accomplish, and what powers and capabilities they have, and strongly resist deviating from preset abilities.  I also value Players who are able to improv their Characters as well.

Mirror, Mirror - Although it may not be obvious, I do absorb Player ideas during the course of the game, and may, or may not, reflect those ideas in the story over time.

GM Merit Badges Matrix

At the Literary Role Playing Game Society we have often discussed the fact that there are different Gamesmastering styles.  Recently I ran across The GM Merit Badges idea, which originated at Strange Magic Blog.  I think it is a brilliant set of icons to define different aspects of Gamesmastering, and I have divided them into two basic groups, Game Mechanics, and Story Orientations.  The Badges artwork is courtesy of Lorc (many thanks, nice job!).  To see the definitions of the GM Merit Badges please visit Strange Magic Blog.

Taking it just one step further, here is my take on the combinations of Story Orientations (across the top) vs. Game Mechanics, showing which ones I think go best with which.  Of course, I will be the first to point out that this is a rough guess, and certainly open to differences of opinion based on alternate interpretations of the meanings of the Badges.   However, it's probably a good initial stab at it, so here it goes.

• Green = pretty good chance of success.
• Yellow = success is possible, though not necessarily probable.
• Red = success seems problematic.
• Grey = who knows?

Story Orientation (top) vs Mechanics Aspects (left) Matrix

Suspense

Simply put, Suspense is not knowing what is going to happen in a situation where the results are important to the observers.

For Gamesmaster’s running RPGs there is always a wish to create a sense of suspense for the Players. For Players the suspense is an enjoyable aspect of the game. So I’d like to talk a little bit about techniques that can be used to create suspense in the game.

First, we should note that there are two avenues of suspense. One is related to the mechanics of the game and affects the Player. The other is related to the story of the game and affects the Player’s Character.

In the first case suspense is usually inherent in the act of rolling the dice. That kind of suspense is mechanics-related. To mitigate the chances of failure the Players often try to maximize their chances of success by doing things like maximizing their Character’s stats, but also can be things like strategically or tactically positioning the party members to maximize combat advantage, or using the appropriate weapons or mystic powers, as well as such mundane things as purchasing the right equipment for the adventure, which might entail previously having re-conned the location, or having done prior research. A well organized and effective approach to a situation can provide the necessary bonuses to make the difference between “high chance of fail” and “a good chance to succeed”. And so we find that the mechanical aspect of suspense is related to preparation in some way. When Players work hard at thinking through their approach to a situation, then their investment in time and forethought can add considerably to the suspense they feel when rolling the dice. Encouraging Players to think through the issues, possibly through some vague but intriguing comments by NPCs, can add to the mechanical suspense the Players feel when the dice get rolled.

Another aspect of Player oriented suspense is what I think of as The Player Character Death Effect… knowing that in any given combat the Player’s Character can get killed. This is a tricky one. The Gamesmaster has to negotiate a delicate balance in relation to Player Character death. How do you provide enough evidence in the game that the Player Characters may indeed get killed, but not cause the Players to feel too much anxiety at the possibility of their Character’s death? I had an experience like this in my game. One of my Players, having had her Character killed once (although she came back to life after an adventure through the underworld), became averse to taking what she considered “unnecessary risks”. This actually lead to her leaving behind an important and well beloved NPC who was trapped in a spider web because she could not tell if the mumblings coming from the large lump of webs were from a friend, or a monster. So with great hesitation she finally decided to back away and not take the chance. She didn’t want to risk being killed again. So, that’s one aspect of what makes The Player Character Death Effect a challenge for Gamesmasters. Another problem is that some Players take high umbrage at the death of their Characters and leave the game. A related problem I ran into once was that one of my Players was so crushed by the fact his Character died that he broke down and started crying. On the one hand it certainly proved that he had an emotional attachment to his Character, which is laudable, but also proved that some Players have a very hard time letting go of beloved Characters for this very reason. So these are issues that have potential to disrupt, if not actually ruin a game.

And yet, the solution that some Gamesmasters adopt, which is to spare the Player Characters from The Player Character Death Effect by fudging the rules, or modifying the dice rolls when they have resulted in a Player Character death, can also be problematic. Without the credible threat of Player Character death, the Players may conclude that their Characters have some sort of Gamesmaster initiated God-Mode turned on, and start behaving badly. I’ve seen that before. Knowing that the Gamesmaster won’t let them die, some Players take advantage. They begin to take chances that would be absurd under any other circumstance. It kind of ruins the sport of the game when this happens. The other side of that same coin is that Players may become disinterested in the game. If you know you can go into any battle with any creature, and not die, then the die rolls are going to ultimately not be very suspenseful. After a while, just like being allowed to eat as much candy and ice cream as you possibly can, it becomes un-fun.

I think overall the most important feedback that I’ve gotten from Players is that if they must die, the wish they could die well. That means that they prefer that they die in some climactic way that exemplifies their heroic nature, and not because of some dumb minor incident during which they just “rolled bad” and died. That’s understandable. Unfortunately, that’s difficult to engineer in a game where Players take chances when they choose, and roll the dice to determine the outcome. One bit of advice in this regard that I give my players is “maximize your chances of success, and try to minimize dangerous actions that have little importance to your Character’s goals”. Other than that the Gamesmaster cannot really do much more, other than to try to guide the adventures along pathways that have importance to the Players, and minimize the dangers associated with non-critical paths in the game world.

So the GM has to negotiate Player Character death pretty carefully. That means keeping an eye on balance of forces in every combat situation, as well as other situations, such as the effectiveness of poisonous traps, the results of dangerous non-combat tasks, etc. Depending on the rules system you use to run your game this can be either relatively easy or rather hard (if not impossible) to do. Yet as Gamesmaster you have to be cognizant of the issue just the same. Personally, I choose to use a rules-light system that gives me a reasonably good chance of being able to estimate chances of survival in any dangerous situation, and so I can adjust values relatively easily to hopefully mitigate the odds of Player Character death.

Another aspect of suspense is much less about mechanics, but just as important. It is the Plot-Suspense that accrues when the Character’s themselves are involved in suspenseful activities that are not related to die rolling. For example, the resolution of a mystery, where the suspense is in figuring out Who-Done-It, and the possibility of danger until the mystery is resolved. This is much more of an art than a science, but the Gamemasters who manage this aspect well provide yet another form of suspense for the Players that can be very entertaining. I’m thinking of one example from my game where the Players were carrying around a monster inside one of them, and it did not become apparent until the end, when the last remaining Player Character was running along the path and suddenly it dawned on her what had happened, just as her companion behind her was transforming into the monster. She turned to look, and I have to say the look on her face at that moment was priceless!

There are some thoughts on some aspects of suspense in the game. I’d be curios to hear your reactions.