Setting Phobia

[Troll Lord]

The Darkenfold. This area was the genesis of Aihrde, I've played in it for years. I know the forest very well. I've written modules on it. I run convention games in it all the time.

So for the past 2 years I've been running a game in the Darkenfold forest. For the first time in a very long time, probably ove ra year's worth of games, the party wandered north and into Kaymar. It was this strange surreal experience as I thought to myself..."what the hell is going on out here? I can't remember." I looked in the Codex, read up a little. It all seemed very foreign and strange. Very unfamiliar.

I felt like a stranger in a strange land and before 2 games were up I had shepherded the party back beneath the cool, inviting eaves of the Darkenfold.

I'm a veteran CK locked in my own tiny sub-setting.

Steve
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The High Lord, Coburg the Undying

He who sits on the elephants back

Castle and Crusade Society
troll@trolllord.com

[Breakdaddy]

Hahhaaha. And here I was afraid to run Erde for you guys back in the day! Now that I think of it the games you ran for us always were Darkenfold games!

[Arazmus]

It's all good for me, I end up modifying everything to my needs anyway.
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I'll tell you what I do like though: a killer, a dyed-in-the-wool killer. Cold blooded, clean, methodical and thorough. ~Zorg

[Rigon]

That just means you need to spend some time writing material for that side of the Cradle. That would suite me just fine.

R-
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Rigon o' the Lakelands, Baron of The Castles & Crusades Society
The Book of the Mind

[serleran]

That is a huge hurdle of a con against the "sandbox" adventure style. If the players leave their prison, er, world, there is nothing but void to fill... at least in your case, you have defined a larger setting, but have not used it. It happens. You'd probably get reacquainted if you read your notes, not the Codex (assuming there is more to what you wrote than what appeared in print; I know in my case, that is always true.) Or... you could just make a new version. Unless it conflicts with previously established, verified in-game knowledge, who'll care? Keep it fun. Keep it moving.
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[Go0gleplex]

Is why I don't like using "canned" settings...I'm not as familiar with what is going on as I am with my own stuff, so canned settings become just resource material.
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The obvious will always trip you up FAR more than the obscure.

Baron Grignak Hammerhand of the Pacifica Provinces-

High Warden of the Castles & Crusades Society

[Arazmus]

F'Risnstance...my players left their sandbox to try to head off a possible assassination attempt from abroad...I was not ready for them to head across the continent to try and take down a huge organization that will probably wipe them out in no time but I had to set it up and let them have a go at it. (Fortunately with con/bbq season in full swing I've got June to plan.)

So I was going to have an AlQadim-esque setting west of the Cradle and now I just dropped it right in there. Airhde is huge, so it's no problem.
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I'll tell you what I do like though: a killer, a dyed-in-the-wool killer. Cold blooded, clean, methodical and thorough. ~Zorg

[Treebore]

Thats one of the big reasons I love Airhde, its so big and open that even despite all the "canon" written for it I still have plenty of room to add my own things without bumping elbows with the canon material, unless I want it to.

So Steve, its time for you to grow and step outside your comfort zone, and get back into the creative side of CKing.
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The Ruby Lord, Earl of the Society

Next Con I am attending: http://www.neoncon.com/

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[Lord Dynel]

I've done something similar, Steve. Part of my old homebrew, a forest called Avara, was very ancient, very primeval. With hordes of baddies after my players, they decided to head for Avara - a 100 mile trek - and hide amongst the ancient trees there, a place most people don't venture. After about three sessions, I put them back into the world. It wasn't so much I was locked in my campaign world as it was the party went somewhere I hadn't expected them to and it felt very odd. I wanted to get them back into the "normal" area of the world so I would feel more comfortable.
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LD's C&C creations - the witch, a half-ogre, skill and 0-level rules

Troll Lord wrote:
Lord D: you understand where I"m coming from.

[Troll Lord]

Treebore: You are right about stepping out the comfort zone, but now Mac doesn't really want to adventure anywhere either. The players have learned about secret treks, hidden caverns, established weapons and supply caches (I destroy equipment constantly). haaha Its all really sad.

Lord D: you understand where I"m coming from.

There is probably some psychic problem I'm having, should see a pyschiatrist. That would be interesting actually: Dr. I'm having trouble getting out of my make believe comfort zone. ha

Steve

ps: Jason, breakdaddy, was the only character to live through his adventure in the darkenfold, through a combination of hard fighting and good old fashioned "run away!" hahaa
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The High Lord, Coburg the Undying

He who sits on the elephants back

Castle and Crusade Society
troll@trolllord.com

[Breakdaddy]

Troll Lord wrote:
...ps: Jason, breakdaddy, was the only character to live through his adventure in the darkenfold, through a combination of hard fighting and good old fashioned "run away!" hahaa

Awww yeahhhh. Braghni the Dwarf's mama didn't raise no fool!!! I could hide like a hobbit when I needed to. I let Davis and Mark run headlong into the fray (and end up dead and hog-tied to a tree as a cautionary tale). Mark's character would chastise Braghni for cowardice, but that only lasted until Mark's PC was as dead as the rest of em! Braghni: The only PC to make it past level 1 in that set of adventures.

I tried to come up with better ways to confront the challenges, but YOU try working with gung-ho bullheaded characters who would rather die like vikings than do a little recon and live to fight another day

[Go0gleplex]

Sort of reminds me of that old proverb; never adventure with someone braver than yourself.
_________________
The obvious will always trip you up FAR more than the obscure.

Baron Grignak Hammerhand of the Pacifica Provinces-

High Warden of the Castles & Crusades Society

[Breakdaddy]

Go0gleplex wrote:
Sort of reminds me of that old proverb; never adventure with someone braver than yourself.

Haha, actually it follows the old rule that you dont have to be able to run fast, just faster than the other guy! Those goobs got to be "the other guy", which worked out well for me

[Omote]

Man, use a new setting as a way to add NITRO into the campaign. Even if the players aren't receptive, they'll remember it and it creates a larger tapestry to the world. There's always something beyond those forest walls. Find out what that is or not, but that part of the world is living and breathing too.

~O
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> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society

[commanderFuron]

The group I game with would be a nightmare. I think they like to look at the map and toss a dart to pick were they might go in a session.

I think it's like tossing the guantlet down to the CK. We ARE going to go here, see what you are going to do about it or come up with. In Omote's RA game we found ways to get half way around the globe. We actively looked for a way to visit the city of brass and in general we did our best to do exactly what we wanted. Which in turn made it a very fun game for everyone. I think all of us that played for the whole thing will remember it as one of our favorite games.

In my planes hopping game based on return to the demon web pits the group literally decide they were going to do something completely unrelated and spent more than half the game engaged in what was at the time a small subplot. Granted it grew into the main story but it wasn't what I had intended. In addition, given the planes hopping nature of the game sometime they would just pick random places to visit. It was a lot of fun for me to run and I hope to play in.

One thing I like to do when this happens is take a module or encounter I had planned for an area the PC's were in and adapt it on the fly to where they went. That way it helps fill gaps in nicely and gives me a break as a ck to really flesh out the rest of the new area as they explore. Plus if it's different than what was "official" for the area, it just keeps the players on their toes. They know they can't expect things they know out of game to always be correct in game.

[Omote]

commanderFuron wrote:
The group I game with would be a nightmare. I think they like to look at the map and toss a dart to pick were they might go in a session.

Haha, no doubt CF. I also play with this group all the time, and the settings usually turn into exploration of various parts of the worlds... "Oooh I wonder what's there. We should go!". For this particular group, to be tied down to one particular locale would be tough.

commanderFuron wrote:
I think it's like tossing the guantlet down to the CK. We ARE going to go here, see what you are going to do about it or come up with. In Omote's RA game we found ways to get half way around the globe. We actively looked for a way to visit the city of brass and in general we did our best to do exactly what we wanted. Which in turn made it a very fun game for everyone. I think all of us that played for the whole thing will remember it as one of our favorite games.

Thanks for saying so CF. The Rappan Athuk Reloaded campaign, even though a mega-dungeon style campaign, really turned out good. And when the PCs pick up on one tiny little aspect or mention of someplace else in the campaign world, and then all of the sudden the whole party wants to go there... whew, that can and does challange a CK. I think this is good for a number of reasons. As mentioned above, it really makes the world pop. With the players actually playing in a campaign world that has more to it than a single country, forest, etc. helps create a more visceral setting. Another reason this is important is the actual aspect of challanging the CK. To do so at this level really helps a CKs creative juices, and keeps him on his toes. There is nothing worse in a game than a CK telling the players... "man I don't know anything about that" or "I don't know. The book doesn't describe that." These types of things really hurt a game. When you can tell players about a new land or area in a campaign world, I like to think that keeps things fresh in the player's minds. I like to think that the players continue the game in their head even after the session is over. Hopefully as a CK you've created something for the players to think about when the session ends. This could be a new, mysterious part of the setting and can be just one method to keep the game alive in the players minds after the session is over. At least for me, this is fantastically rewarding.

Explore your worlds CKs! Even if your players never get there, explore.

~O
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> Omote's Advanced C&C stuff <
Duke Omote Landwehr, Holy Order of the FPQ ~ Prince of the Castles & Crusades Society

[Joe]

To me that is when the game TRULY takes on a life of it's own!

Not only are the players exploring new lands and locales but so is the GM.

Go with it, explore your world with wide eyes. You may find the world has more dimensions than you had originally envisioned.
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'Nosce te Ipsum' -Delphic Maxim

'Follow your bliss.' -Joseph Campbell

[Lord Dynel]

I agree with you, Omote. Going to different places, exploring a campaign world, especially a homebrew, can give the CK a real sense of pride. Knowing that players want to check out what you've done, or how well you handle and bring to life a published setting can bring plenty of enjoyment to players and CKs alike. It can be daunting sometimes, however, and if the CK is feeling out of his element, for one reason or another, I think that he/she should make a change to get more comfortable behind the screen. As long as the players are enjoying the game. But again, I do agree with you, sir.
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LD's C&C creations - the witch, a half-ogre, skill and 0-level rules

Troll Lord wrote:
Lord D: you understand where I"m coming from.

[Sir Osis of Liver]

Go0gleplex wrote:
Sort of reminds me of that old proverb; never adventure with someone braver than yourself.

Reminds me more of Herb Brooks..."There's a fine line between guts and brains."

[Treebore]

Sir Osis of Liver wrote:
Reminds me more of Herb Brooks..."There's a fine line between guts and brains."

Cowardice is when fear controls you, bravery is when you control your fear. Said by many soldiers over the centuries of warfare.
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The Ruby Lord, Earl of the Society

Next Con I am attending: http://www.neoncon.com/

My House Rules: http://www.freeyabb.com/phpbb/viewtopic ... llordgames

[zarathustra]

You know what might be an interesting tactic in such a case?

Throw a really touch random encounter at them as they get to new place, a real ass kicker where they are overmatched and outsmarted or come up against some confounding new tactic.

- Throw that feeling if being out in the scary, big wide world back onto them and it kind of reinforces the "otherness" of the other place if you confound a few expectations. Isn't it even more fun to explore when the new place scares the crap outta you.

[Sir Osis of Liver]

Davis's orc encounters are great for this. The trick, though, is playing the orcs as intelligent creatures instead of simply bloodlust-driven killers.

[Treebore]

zarathustra wrote:
You know what might be an interesting tactic in such a case?

Throw a really touch random encounter at them as they get to new place, a real ass kicker where they are overmatched and outsmarted or come up against some confounding new tactic.

- Throw that feeling if being out in the scary, big wide world back onto them and it kind of reinforces the "otherness" of the other place if you confound a few expectations. Isn't it even more fun to explore when the new place scares the crap outta you.

I have noticed enthusiasm for a game goes up dramatically after near TPK's occur.
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The Ruby Lord, Earl of the Society

Next Con I am attending: http://www.neoncon.com/

My House Rules: http://www.freeyabb.com/phpbb/viewtopic ... llordgames

[Sir Osis of Liver]

Treebore wrote:
I have noticed enthusiasm for a game goes up dramatically after near TPK's occur.

I'm seeing this too after I nearly TPKed my party this past weekend.
Maybe that's what happens when they take on a pack of ghouls without a cleric in the party.