RayOK, I’m sure that this has come up before here, but I didn’t quite find what I was after.
I’ve owned and been reading all the UA books for a couple years now, but never run a game. I’m starting one soon, with a group of people who know nothing about UA – I’ve made sure of that! The plan is to start them as street-level nobodies, and slowly introduce them to the Occult Underground.
Now, that being said, I suppose my question is this: What ideas do you all have to introduce characters to the OU?
The players (most of them quite excited about the prospect of playing more-or-less normal everyday joes) look to be creating characters in their early 20’s, just out of college or a stint in the military. They’ll all know each other and at least be on friendly terms.
I don’t have much more info to give at this point.
So how have GMs here introduced new players to the world of UA?
F.A.R.“Bill in Three Persons” is a killer – that’s how I plan to begin my new campaign this fall (don’t tell the players!). If you don’t want to use a published adventure, there are plenty of other options. One of the easiest might be to ask yourself what they’d be doing as mundanes, and to throw something their way that looks like what they’d normally deal with but turns out to have an unnatural root. I did this once in a Call of Cthulhu game that my players thought was d20 modern.
Here’s one thing I’ve had to remind myself of while planning the new game: if weird stuff is falling into their laps, make sure there’s a reason. The Occult Underground is difficult enough to find that the existence of magic has never been revealed to the general public; don’t make it easy unless it’s easy for a reason (i.e., they’re being groomed as tools for a powerful Duke, one of them has some ritual significance to a certain cabal, or maybe they just happened to be in the wrong place at the right time – but decide what it is first).
Also, where is your game set? If you and your players know the area, you can really turn that to your advantage (esp. if you know what the occult mainstream is like there). I guess that’s all the advice I have so far; I’m planning my own game now, so I’ll keep an eye on this thread in case someone who actually knows what he’s doing replies.
By the way, I notice from your username that you’re a Chambers fan. If you’re interested in Call of Cthulhu, I hope you’ll check out the comments in the “Mordiggan” entry under Avatars. There’s some brilliant work in there.
– FAR out
RayMy only problem with starting with “Bill in Three Persons” is that I feel it’s a bit too much of an in-your-face introduction. I’ll probably use it later, but I’d like to start a little more subtly.
The game will probably be set in NYC. I figure it’s ripe for a resurgence of the OU. Fear of the Sleepers will only keep the magickal community out for so long, especially in a city that would be a haven for Cliomancers and Urbanomancers, filled with avatars (most ignorant of their power, granted), and filled with as much history and people and events as that place is. Plus, the fear of the Sleepers would be so much more real there, I can keep them as constant threats (both real and imagined).
I was thinking of starting with the PCs out on the town for a night (maybe one of their birthdays or some other celebration) with an NPC buddy who’s really a good friend of theirs. But what the PCs don’t know is that this buddy is a fledgling adept who, unfortunately, was a little too flashy with his magick, and at some point during the night, the Sleepers are going to take him out. Hopefully the PCs will want to investigate and will probably meet up with some of the OU contacts their friend had and be drawn in.
DominusYou could start with those Trigger Events. When did life get wierd? Alternatively, what is driving someone towards power? If someone is desperately trying to cure their kid’s terminal illness, a little rumour that a group of people have the answer could draw player characters into the OU.
Alternatively, some of them could be innocent bystanders in one of the scuffles of the OU.
That said, seeing a buddy taken out by the Sleepers would probably work fine. I’ve considered starting a campaign that way too.
Another option is the good old McDonalds meals complete with minor charges. A Drive Thru meal can be a Trigger Event in itself!
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