#Help in switching game styles

1 messages · Page 1 of 1 (latest)

inner comet
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Whats up yo, so since the beginning of the current campaign I am running it has been a general narrative driven adventure (I don't know the proper terminology). What I mean is, I run a game where I prep the plot before every session. I'm now leaning more towards shifting the game into a player-driven sandbox type game. The problem is, I still have plot points I want to address. I'm trying to strike a balance between having these plot points and leaving it up to the players to drive the narrative forward.

For example, my group will be freshly arriving in Sigil next session. One of my players (a bard) has a cursed infernal tome that has a high level devil inside. The devil obviously has motives of its own, and is influencing the bard. On top of that, the bards mother has been missing since he was a child. She is in the prison in Sigil. How do I strike a balance between weaving these plot points and letting the players explore and drive the narrative?
(I know I need to things for the characters to stumble onto. I am also planning on letting my players know that I am switching gears slightly and letting them drive the narrative more than before.) Thanks in advance!

flint bluff
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Opening the game's narrative has growing pains, but IME it's worth it.

I think you want to link the story beats together more, rather than having them in isolation.

Two examples:

  1. You're talking all about one PC, the Bard, with the cursed devil tome & their mom in jail. What might either of these story beats have to do with other PCs' stories/interests? What about connections to other stories you've introduced?

  2. With the "Bard's mom in jail" story beat, maybe the party gets interested in a job involving sneaking into Sigil's jail to get info from a magically bound sensitive prisoner like a fallen deva or ex-factol? Now, you have a chance to seed the "Bard's mom in jail" into that, or vice versa.

inner comet
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Im not sure why I hadn't thought about weaving other PC's backstories together, thank you for that!

gray wave
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Other things to remember - if you want them to enter the prison and reveal the mother’s presence, then you need to have multiple choice routes to go in. Like one or more PCs are accused of a crime - they spend a night in jail before either being released or further accused, your choice., where theyhear rumors about prisoners in “secure lockup”. Later, they are given a job offer to break someone out of prison near the secure lockup. One of the prisoners they meet gives them a piece of info pointing to Mom’s presence. Another job could have them meet someone who knew Mom before, and throws shade on the “truth” of how/why she went missing, pointing to “she had enemies in high places”. Etc… the more flags thatpoint in a direction, the more likely the PCs will bite.

inner comet
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And not railroad into one option