Quote from: David R[...] the action adventure aspect of Touching The Void, which I would concentrate on if I was running a pure survival game.

GM: "Make a willpower roll."
Player: "Fuck, again?!"

I was thinking about this stuff after writing that earlier post, and it occurred to me that the common thread between all these movies was a person discovering something in themselves they didn't know they had. Could be something good like courage, something bad like a lonely isolation or a killing urge, but they discovered something. But that self-discovery didn't come from navel-gazing, it came from action. So I guess I could sum it up as, ordinary person encounters extraordinary situation, and discovers something in themselves they didn't know about.

Quote from: David RWhat I want to know is, what kind of GM is your friend? Does he like the thesp stuff? Because a lot of this depends on how the GM can establish tone and "play" characters, not to mention he has to press the verisimilitude pedal quite hard This last part sometimes requires a lot of research but I've seen some talented GMs pull it off with minimal research.

We don't know what kind of GM he is. He's played lots of D&D years ago, then a long break, and a few thespier games with me recently, and that's about it - he's just GMed a crazy Heroes: Unlimited (TM) by Panhandlium (TM) session. That was fun, but not very deep

As a player he's actually pretty thespy. In the second Tiwesdaeg campaign, it was he who led the party down a more intrigue-based path, talking to people, scheming, and so on. He said he liked the openness of the games I ran, encouraging player input - that players can set the tone of it, decide goals for their characters themselves, and so on.

So I don't know what he'll be like as a GM - and probably he doesn't know, either. We'll discover this as we go along. I was saying to an online friend earlier, it's one advantage of a one-on-one game, a single player will have more patience, and put less pressure on a GM, than would a group. It's a strength of the one-on-one game that it can make the player input into the whole thing a lot easier - or it's a weakness, if the player and GM aren't keen on it.

Quote from: JimBobOzGM: "Make a willpower roll."
Player: "Fuck, again?!"

By action I was thinking something like this:

GM: What are you going to do?
Player: Cut the rope
GM: You cold son of a bitch
Player: Hey, he'll survive...

(We are talking about Touching The Void, right ? Jeez I hope I got the movie reference right )

Hmm, since he mentioned 8mm, could be he likes that kind of stuff. An action adventure with some depht. Maybe something like Seven, where you're an investigator following up on clues which lead straight to hell. Personally for me, these kinds of adventures are pretty easy to handle...but it's so difficult trying to come up with stuff, when I'm unsure what the GM is like.

Regards,
David R

Does it have to be modern?

How about Shogun? Here is a not completely atypical man of his time thrown into the cauldron that was Japan. Lost and alone he must survive and finds that he can, instead, thrive.

Moral choices? He could have turned into a drunkard, just lived his life as a lost depressed alcoholic in the slums of renaissance Tokyo. Or how about when a simple innocuous command ends up being followed to it's ultimate conclusion getting someone killed. He is surrounded by a banal attitude toward the extinguishing of human life that he could easily adopt, even by accident.

Relationships? I grew up in a household where the white american airman lived with his Japanese bride, it has some VERY interesting moments. Or, how do you stay civil with someone who doesn't understand that it is wrong to chop off the head of a bystander just because they didn't bow to the correct level?

Crap, we haven't even gotten to combat yet.

Quote from: balzacqHow about something set in 19th-century India? Lots of Englishmen running around having adventures, with lots of social structure (English and Indian), lots of mystery, lots of internal and external enemies (Thuggee and unconquered nations, and Afghans/Chinese/Russians respectively). Also lots of source material (Gunga Din, Flashman, Kipling, etc.).

Watch for In Harm's Way: The Great Game, coming hopefully by the end of the year.

-clash

An idea I had for a character... please don't include in quote, in case I come back and edit it - so I don't bore anyone with multiple posts.

   Hanley Tucks

Abilities and Flairs

• Fitness
• • Muscle (+1)
  • Agility (-1)
• Awareness [+1]
• Instinct (+1)
• Cognisance (+1)
• Creativity [+1]
• Improvisation (+1)
• Visualisation (-1)
• Harmony (-1)
• Reasoning
• • Memory (-1)
  • Deduction (+1)
• Influence
• • Financial (-1)

Aspects

• Luck 3
• Discipline 4
• Revelation 2

Gimmicks

• Internal Compass
• Prepares thoroughly
• Sleeps 2/3 nights

Skills

• Brawling Novice
• Firearms Proficient
• First Aid Novice
• Investigation Novice
• Literacy Novice
• Social Sciences Novice
• Subterfuge Novice
• Survival Proficient

Convictions

• Values – commitment to humanity
• Fears – inclination to arachnophobia and acrophobia
• Temptations – inclination to lust, inclination to up-close-and-personal violence
• Triggers – a habit that witnessing injustice triggers violence temptation

[/COLOR]
Active Exploits also recommends "threads", as they call it be defined - basically, your rivals, friends, etc. I'll think about those a bit. I gave him one less Abilities level than he could have had, but the game doesn't specify numbers of Gimmicks, either, and three seems like a lot to me. Though I would like to make him good-looking - this is escapist gaming, after all

Glancing down that lot, without considering a character background, does it look like there might be a few plot hooks for a sufficiently devious GM?

Quote from: JimBobOzGlancing down that lot, without considering a character background, does it look like there might be a few plot hooks for a sufficiently devious GM?

It looks like a cool character to me.  You have a good range of abilities and some nice built-in handles that the GM can grab on to.

As for "threads", I think that one of your contacts should be a chain smoking, burnt out French photojournalist.  It just seems to fit for me.

I have to thank you for this thread.  I have been obsessively thinking about doing a modern intrigue game set in the developing world since yesterday afternoon...


TGA

Quote from: David RThis may be bad form -suggesting your own campaign pitch -but maybe this could be interesting as a single player game :

Title : Goodnight Where Ever You Are

Regards,
David R

David, your brain is full of awesome.


TGA

I think that if David and Doc R ever met in person, the sun would go nova. If they also met Bailywolf, we'd blow out a good 200 LY radius. Only so much awesome can be contained in one place...

-clash

The character reminds me of something out of a Hemingway novel.  Here's something I've came up with based off of what you've given so far.  I'm outlining a simple framework so you and your GM can adjust it to your tastes.  

Set in the present, complete with internet and cell phones, your character inherits a sizeable collection of letters, post cards, and holiday cards.  The letters were written to a family member, post WWII, by an unknown man who's detailing travel and his experiences to exotic places around the globe.  For some reason (mid-life crisis, hankering for travel, curiosity) your character wants to re-trace the path of these letters.  I would give you a postcard or letter to start the game for every new location traveled to.  The way I imagine this, your character finds himself pulled into events due to his commitment to humanity or flare ups against injustices (this gives you the option to explore any of the above mentioned themes).  Your contacts are family members and friends that keep in touch through your cell phone and laptop while all of this stuff is going on.  I see Hanley Tucks trying to explain to the wife why he didn't call in a way that she won't demand him to come back home immediately even though he was running for his life from a drug cartel in Bangkok.  

The goal for the GM is to see what sort of man you return to friends and family at the end of the campaign.

Quote from: GunslingerThe character reminds me of something out of a Hemingway novel.  

Hah! It could have been worse. The rules tell that the "trigger" must be tied to a belief, fear or temptation. I was thinking of tying the "witnesses injustice" to "temptation to lust". That way, if he rescues someone, he gets horny. So if he rescues a guy, it's off to celebrate, and if he rescues a woman - well, basically he desires women who've been victimised in some way, he can "rescue" them. Or reverse it if Hanley is actually gay!

But then I decided that was too cheesy and at the same time a bit creepy, so I tied it to his violence instead.

Quote from: GunslingerSet in the present, complete with internet and cell phones, your character inherits a sizeable collection of letters [...] The way I imagine this, your character finds himself pulled into events due to his commitment to humanity or flare ups against injustices [...]

The goal for the GM is to see what sort of man you return to friends and family at the end of the campaign.

Mate, that's an awesome idea! I'm pointing the GM to this thread again. I think it makes him feel pretty humble, all the great ideas around. I said that ideas are easy, putting them into place is hard, and a GM (or writer, for that matter) only needs one or two big ideas for the whole piece - and it's fine if those ideas are stolen. All my best campaigns, characters and writing I stole from somewhere else

Quote from: JimBobOzI said that ideas are easy, putting them into place is hard, and a GM (or writer, for that matter) only needs one or two big ideas for the whole piece - and it's fine if those ideas are stolen. All my best campaigns, characters and writing I stole from somewhere else

I think that this sums up a huge part of the value of theRPGsite for me.  I have gotten a ton a great ideas for campaigns, characters, and adventures just by reading the posts of some amazingly creative people here.  Thank you all.


TGA

This may be a little off key, but if you're looking for something a tad out there, you could play an ex-South African (black) police officer who finds himself drawn into the clusterfuck which was the Truth & Reconciliation Commission :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truth_and_Reconciliation_Commission

Regards,
David R

Quote from: GunslingerThe character reminds me of something out of a Hemingway novel.  Here's something I've came up with based off of what you've given so far.  I'm outlining a simple framework so you and your GM can adjust it to your tastes.  

Set in the present, complete with internet and cell phones, your character inherits a sizeable collection of letters, post cards, and holiday cards.  The letters were written to a family member, post WWII, by an unknown man who's detailing travel and his experiences to exotic places around the globe.  For some reason (mid-life crisis, hankering for travel, curiosity) your character wants to re-trace the path of these letters.  I would give you a postcard or letter to start the game for every new location traveled to.  The way I imagine this, your character finds himself pulled into events due to his commitment to humanity or flare ups against injustices (this gives you the option to explore any of the above mentioned themes).  Your contacts are family members and friends that keep in touch through your cell phone and laptop while all of this stuff is going on.  I see Hanley Tucks trying to explain to the wife why he didn't call in a way that she won't demand him to come back home immediately even though he was running for his life from a drug cartel in Bangkok.  

The goal for the GM is to see what sort of man you return to friends and family at the end of the campaign.

This is awesome! I would just add that the letters are coming in now, though they are postmarked during the War. This occasionally happens with the Post Office - I remember reading about a case like this a couple of years ago. Maybe he inherited the house, and these letters are from his grandfather, who went missing during the war....

-clash

Quote from: flyingmiceThis is awesome! I would just add that the letters are coming in now, though they are postmarked during the War. This occasionally happens with the Post Office - I remember reading about a case like this a couple of years ago. Maybe he inherited the house, and these letters are from his grandfather, who went missing during the war....

If you went that route, I highly recommend the props from the H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society.  I've bought one of their CDs giving PDF files and detailed instructions on creating things like passports, airline tickets, newspaper clippings, bank books, and all sorts of other documents from the 30s (British, American, Russian, etc.)  I also suggest checking antique and curio shops, where in the past I've found absolutely wonderful vintage postcards from around the world, both mint and used.  There are also sites online where you can find old postcards to print on cardstock and use as props.

I love props!  

I'll repost some of the ideas we talked about on MSN the other day. Even if you're not interested in 'em, other folks might find them useful.

1) Nazi Hunter - You play a middle-aged Jewish guy in the 1970's dedicated to bringing Nazis to justice. You've got to find them, prove they're Nazis, and then get them in a situation where they can be captured and put on trial (or dealt with somehow...). It's a classic detective series, but without the hard-boiled noir stuff.

2) Youth Counselor - You're in one of the poorest neighbourhoods in the nation, where guns, drugs and money are all anybody cares about. You've got to save as many of the kids as possible from going down the shitter. You don't have weapons or backup, so you've got to rely on cunning, a good mouth and your reputation to keep your ass from getting shot.

3) Civilian Administrator - You've been assigned to a volatile district of Iraq by the Americans. You've got to keep the peace, rebuild, avoid getting assassinated, all while under pressure from your superiors for faster results. Somewhat similar to the Youth Counselor, but you have a bit more power and money behind you, though the situation is even more dire.