A nearby town from where I live is reestablishing it's historic underground for tourism. I thought it's worth checking out and we were not disappointed. Taking pictures was not allowed inside the dungeon, but I'll share what I can.
A little history
The guide told us they can say that parts of the dungeon existed already 600 years ago. At that time it was a small trading town with a port and circa 4.000 inhabitants. It was used for storage, as a last defense or escape, as a meeting place and even as a place to live. The town is build an a slope and the soil is very suitable for tunneling. And tunneling they did. A lot. As of this writing they've rediscovered 600 rooms and they believe there are up to 600 rooms still to be rediscovered. They started doing so because this had happened:
It went 4 meters down from there on... [Photographer: Martin Kaemper]
More beer in dungeons and other interesting facts
All in all we saw about 600 meters and maybe 10 rooms of the underground, ranging from the 14th century up to as early as 1940. Here are a few of my observations and knowledge I could gather:
They had pieces of slate incorporated into the ceiling, because they leave splinters on the floor as soon as they break. It's what you'd want to know when the earth moved and passage isn't save anymore. I thought that was clever...
The temperature down there was somewhere between 15° and 17° Celsius and it's really damp, so it feels actually colder. Forget storing books or fabrics down there for a longer time.
We were told there is something like underground weather. For instance you can tell it had rained on the surface, because the walls start to glisten as soon as the water gets down there.
They stored all kinds of stuff in the dungeon, but mainly beer. That's because alcohol kills germs and it was healthier than drinking water.
It was very easy to distinguish different tunneling phases alone by the materials used. Parts of the dungeon even got sealed between centuries just to get rid of waste. A dungeon is always changing if somebody is living in it.
No even or straight passages. The ceilings in the tunnels never had the same height, with very low ceilings being the standard. Rooms, though, had always higher ceilings and came in a lot of different shapes.
We were between 6 and 10 meters below the surface, at times with up to 4 tunnels over our heads.
They had discovered very low tunnels (about 1 meter high) and one of the theories about that is, that they used those to send message dogs through.
We had to wear building-site helmets and it was an interesting experience to see how that alone narrows the perception.
Orientation and navigation were really difficult. There never was a clear line of sight, too. Mapping would take forever.
That's about it. We'll go there again, into a private part of the dungeon. 1.5 kilometers and for 2 hours. Maybe I'll be able to take pictures then. Two pictures I was allowed to take to give you but a small impression of it. They are from the tourist information and public:
It's a very small portion of the dungeon!
Sorry about the flashlight...
I'm really looking forward to see more of this enormous underground labyrinth. I'll keep you posted.
“To be truly ignorant, be content with your own knowledge.” (Zhuangzi)
Let them roam free?
With all that thoughts about sandboxing and totally free decisions, I wonder every now and then why alignments are still being used. Does D&D need a moral compass and is it necessarily something written on a character sheet? Is it something a DM regulates? Or should it rather be ignored for good? Are the players really free to do what they want?
This is not about how to play The Game?
A little story about the trick-taking card game Skat. As wikipedia states it, it's a game about hand evaluation, counting and cooperation. A simple french card deck (32 cards) produces up to 2.753.294.408.504.640 hands alone. That means, how the hands are played, is a totally different matter. You just won't live to see the same combination twice. I love this game. And it is dying. Mostly "old" people play it. Younger generations just don't care enough to put in the effort, rewarding or not.
Reasons for that? Players have to take the game serious, before they can start having fun with it. It's not even a difficult task or work. Mistakes happen during play, but it's not about mistakes. It's about counting, evaluation and cooperation. Every lack in even trying any of those (that is, not thinking about what to do and why) will cripple the game. Not for yourself, but for the other players.
It's not about the rules
The rules are complex. Lots and lots of little games in the game. You may have the best hand, but you may not play the lead or play it wrong (wrong evaluation). You may miss that one color is already played (wrong counting) or you played a card that helps the enemy and not you and your partner (no cooperation). That's not the argument I'm trying to establish, because, again, you're still playing the game. Actually, by trying all those things every game, everybody gets better at it.
But knowing the rules and playing the game wrong (there, I wrote it) by, let's say, holding very good cards and not raising for them only to get an edge, will have consequences. The game won't flow, evaluation and cooperation won't be possible anymore. And as soon as the cards are all on the table, the others will notice. There are several other examples I could raise, but it would be about the wrong game.
And now back to D&D
When playing D&D we like to cherish the idea that we can do whatever we want. Most people wouldn't see anything wrong in it, because they won't think bad things might happen. As soon as some bad stuff happens at the table (and I think I wouldn't be wrong in assuming that anyone of us has a few examples to share...), we take it personal.
Whatever the reasons, what happens is always the same. The game won't flow right, evaluation and cooperation don't seem possible anymore, even if people play it by the rules. So, like with Skat, if a game needs a skill set other than knowing it by the rules, the lack of that skill set gets obvious pretty fast. Not knowing how this is related to "playing the game wrong", makes it personal every time and in every discussion I've seen so far.
There is no use in getting angry
It's never the rules or the interpretation of them. Misuse of the rules, on the other hand, will always have an impact on the game. Taking it personal is not a solution, but showing helplessness. Treated as what it is, finding a way to deal with it should be possible. So never take things personal. It's a game after all. This is actually something, you will find in nearly every rulebook. Let's check the Rules Cyclopedia:
"If an argument starts during a game, stop the game for a moment. Listen to both sides, and make a decision. Then continue the game as soon as possible. Do not allow an argument to continue for long. Explain that everyone is trying to have fun, and that the argument can be settled after the game if necessary. If a player complains about the way you are handling something in the game, try to listen to the objection. Be reasonable—he might be right! If you can fix the problem by changing a procedure, try to work out a reasonable compromise." (RC, page 144)
It's never about winning the argument, it's about finding a compromise. It's NOT part of the game, but something that has to happen outside of it. The DM is the one in charge, but that doesn't mean he is always right, it means he has the responsibility. And, finally, it's about an additional skill set: the art of having an argument and coming to a conclusion that settles it.
In conclusion
Are the players free to do whatever they want? As I see it, no. They are free to do whatever they want after considering if what they are about to do is crippling the game for the others and willing to find a compromise if an argument arises. Same goes for the DM. And it's part of the process to learn the game, but not part of the rules. Just knowing all the rules won't make you automatically a good player or DM.
The game itself does not need a "moral compass", but the social interaction between the participants of the game is subject to some kind of moral code based on acceptance and compromise, as all things are when people decide to spend time together. And yes, disregarding this, is playing the game wrong, because playing the game is to make it possible for others to play the game too.
The rules for using alignments in a D&D game are those rare instances, where the rules try to dictate how to behave when playing the game. And I believe they are wrong for exactly that reason. For me, the perfect way to handle alignments is defined by Jeff Rients.
So Gorgonmilk and Porky came up with this wonderful OSR Community Project:
"Once upon a time, a wizard's tower was a place to be avoided, but no more. Most of them have now been abandoned by all but the most vain of magic-users (I'm looking at you, sorceresses!) for more secretive accommodations. These dwellings may be remote -- located in areas nigh-impossible to reach by non-magical means. On the other hand, they may be secreted under the noses of urban passerbys, hidden away through cunning use of arcane geometries, so that not even the most astute of thieves would suspect their existence. What follows are thirty examples of such unreal estates." (Gorgonmilk, Community Project: D30 Table of Arcane Dwellings)
This was wednesday and I thought I'll have a hard time contributing, because, you know, the community will be all over this. But... not so much as yet. So I thought I'd give this a little bit more exposure to the blogosphere.
Even Dumbledore is starting to get pissed! (courtesy of memegenerator)
I'm totally aware of the fact that I don't have that kind of pull. But I like the idea of community projects in general and this particular one, because, well, it's a brilliantly weird and somewhat challenging premise.
So if anybody reads this and didn't see the original post by Gorgonmilk, give it a spin*. After all, who would dare to disappoint all those wizards in need...
*Or just read the entry for the Gelatinious Cubicle. Solid gold, right there. And I will use this at some point...
Most of the day I tried to write a post about playing The Game and free will. I'm really not happy with the result. But while doing the research I stumbled over this little gem:
"Good order results spontaneously when things are let alone." (Zhuangzi)
This is good advice in general and especially for a DM. Zhuangzi's texts are a wonder to behold, even in the translations. Another example:
Once Zhuangzi dreamt he was a butterfly, a butterfly flitting and fluttering around, happy with himself and doing as he pleased. He didn't know he was Zhuangzi. Suddenly he woke up and there he was, solid and unmistakable Zhuangzi. But he didn't know if he was Zhuangzi who had dreamt he was a butterfly, or a butterfly dreaming he was Zhuangzi. Between Zhuangzi and a butterfly there must be some distinction! This is called the Transformation of Things. (2, tr. Burton Watson 1968:49)
I can only recommend to read his works and think about them, if you haven't done so already.
In the last 24 hours I was asked two times, why I had the content warning (people did ask before, but anyway, now I think I should address this). I asked that myself a couple of times. Mostly I wanted this to be a courtesy. You know, I'm still not a native speaker, so, expressing myself in ze English, I will make mistakes. Different languages, different customs and all that.
In Germany, for instance, nudity isn't that much of a problem, gore, though, might be. And the enormous popularity of the word "fuck" shifts to a great degree from place to place. It might be just a filler, it might hurt some sensibilities. One never knows.
Now I realize, this content warning might, on the one side, discourage readers from going behind that wall and, on the other side, give the false impression there might be something dirty behind that content warning. Nope, no dice. It's all pretty kosher.
So, yes, the wall is down. Now I feel naked (not that I'd show a picture of it...).
While thinking about the 3d mapping method (see here for the basics and here for an example), I remembered this post over at Hill Cantons about wilderness descriptions in rpgs and how problematic they are. I think I got an idea how to give this a slightly different perspective.
It's all about the scenery
As a DM you might have something like this:
Part of a Mystara Map in the Rules Cyclopedia
It's all nice and dandy. For overland travel, give them a little bit about the weather and the scenery and it's working. But then a Random Encounter occurs and suddenly a DM might need something like this:
Here it gets problematic. For me at least. It isn't that I'm not able to make something out of it, but, using words only, it will never be as complex as the picture above. Or random, at that. But to get a random encounter into position, just take the group as point of origin and roll the coordinates* with a die appropriate for the distance. Let me illustrate:
With knowing the height difference, direction and distance, a DM can now improvise the surroundings from there (even if it's only a reminder, it is also random and fast). Same goes for interesting features the group might discover.
Landmarks and travel
I should do a post about 3D hexmapping in the near future (I got a few ideas while thinking about this, but anyway). For now let's just say, if one changes the dice for the coordinates to 1d100 yards (or more), one could place nearly anything, hidden or visible, when the group is exploring an area.
They are in a very dense forest and might get lost? A DM could use the same method as described under Navigation in my last post, only with the characters moving, not the ground. So the DM rolls for the movement and the leading characters wilderness survival check (or whatever) modifies the result into the direction the characters want to travel.
Negative results (moving downhill or backwards)
Here are different solutions possible. One is to take only half the result for every negative y and z result, another one would be to treat them just as positive results. In realtime travel, negative results might, for instance, mean complications, like "The trail ahead looks difficult, you might have to reroute...".
For Mountains, add a fixed number to y and ignore negative results everytime you roll it (if the group is going up, of course). And everytime the maximum for y comes up, roll a die with a smaller scale to indicate they are travelling downhill for a short period.
Edit: I lied about the Dolby surround, you'll have to run around the table and improvise...
*x, y, z and the direction get a die. 1D8 for directions: 1 x, y, z = +; 2 x, y = +, z = -; 3 x, z = +, y = -; 4 y, z = +, x = -; 5 x, y, z = -; 6 x, y = -, z = +; 7 x, z = -, y = +; 4 y, z = -, x = +.
This is an example of a 3D shifting mini-dungeon, like I talked about the other day. Took me longer than I thought. What a surprise. This little scenario might be put anywhere before a dungeon. Some might consider it a trap, but I saw smaller Dungeons than that, so I guess both is right. Okay, here is my example...
Well, to begin with, there is no picture of this dungeon. So:
It's a shifting 3D Dungeon,
damn hard to make a picture of...
The Undying Slave Kraken of Kas the Bloody
Background
To protect his lair from nosy intruders, Kas the Bloody (mighty wizard of ill reputation, wielder of the staff Skinflayer) build this shifting passage to crush them all. The powersource for this dungeon is the enslaved and enhanced undead gigantic pet kraken Oggie. He resides in his slimy pool under the dungeon and moves the mucous 10*10*10 foot tiles with his phantom tentacles*.
One unit is 10*10*10 feet.
The Kraken (powersource)
This creature is in command of an gigantic 6.000.000 pieces structure, using the pieces of it as if they were its tentacles.
It's the wizards masterpiece. Intelligent and quite playfull, it holds about 3d10(+8) creatures of any kind in the maze it forms. Its favourite so far is a gelatanious cube, but it grew quite fond of a small group of 7 crafty kobolds that managed to stay alive in there (3 hd, tough buggers with a mean attitude and tools). Other creatures are up to the DM to insert. It might even be a person the characters are looking for (or some other MacGuffin).
It feels creatures that are inside of it and knows exactly where they are, as long as they are putting pressure on the stones. It is able to move its head in the structure, but does so only on rare occasions. Basically it tries to kill intruders either with the creatures already in the structure (which it thinks is great fun) or by shifting them as high as possible and into a pit trap.
As soon as it's prey is dead, it moves the bodies into its mouth. But it really likes to delay the process and play with its prey as long as possible.
The kraken moves deliberatly in any direction with a speed of 50 units per turn in any direction (but does so only, if he gets really annoyed by something). It is pretty tough and clever, how tough is for the DM to decide (I'd go with 15 to 20 hd and 2d10+5 bite damage), INT I'd say is about 18. He has treasure like a black dragon with the same hd would have, down in his slimy and poisonous pool. He is to be turned like a lich. Killing him will let the structure collapse (which means certain death for those in there, barring very few loopholes and some creative ideas).
From the entry on it's a long and straight tunnel up to the center. The 10' blocks it seems to be build of, are full of strange carvings, a lot of scratches and a very resistant dark green moss. 60 feet in it blocks the entrance with a loud bang. As soon as the characters are in the center, the dungeon starts to shift. The kraken will try to route them to a random threat (roll 3d100 and one d8 for position). From now on shifting occurs every 10 minutes. Corridors after every shifting period will lead to threat, too. At least it is the easiest way.
The tiles move very slowly (that's why the movement rate is 1d10 per direction), so getting crushed isn't that likely. But it will test the characters capabilities and it might move creatures towards them, too (arriving after 1d6 shifting turns. The kraken goes even as far as staging ambushes to help the other monsters in there or to rescue them, if it feels like it (use Monster Reaction Table, kobolds get a +2, the cube a +3).
Navigation
To a great deal this depends on the set of D&D rules used. I'd go with the skill acrobatics (basically DEX + 1d20 vs. a difficulty, in this case 20**) or DEX -5 vs. 20 (without the skill) for every shift. Anything above 20 is used to alter the results in the direction the group wants to go. Failing the skill check means a character might get lost (the DM moves him in a random direction for the difference the character failed to reach 20. The character might be able to find the other by closing the gap. Critical failure means the character is stuck and might be crushed to death (2d10+5 points damage, save for half).
It is important to know where to go in this moving maze, so research and a goal might be a good idea. A Magic User might not be able to find the powersource (it being an undead creature and whatnot), but a cleric might. Scrying is an option, though. It is possible for the characters to discover some writings of those trapped here before. Something like "saw the exit above!" scratched in common unto the wall (they'll have 10 minutes between every shifting phase, so there is some time to explore). If a DM wants to handle this randomly, he might assign (again 3 times 1d100 and a d8) locations for stones with messages. Or more features, like a broken stone, for instance, that might be a safe place to hide and rest, stuff like that.
They will need light sources to navigate the dungeon.
Features
Assign x, y and z each with 1d100, direction with 1d8. Those tiles move with the others, so take the shifting result, but roll the d8 again for directions. If the characters are within ten tiles of a feature, they might find it between shifting. If they cross paths during shifting, they might see it. Features are:
1d10 Stones with messages (1d6: 1, 2, 3 "saw the exit above!", 4, 5 "the kraken lurks below", 6 "the black stone holds treasure").
The black stone: Fractured and blackened by a fireball. Some treasure might be found here.
1d6 kobold holes: those smart little guys know how to navigate the dungeon by the pattern of the stones and have dug off holes in some stones as safe havens.
It's all about the numbers
All the DM has to do is keeping track of a few numbers (encounters, features and characters) How close those numbers are gives a DM the distance and relations to each other. What level a group should be is entirely up to the DM and depends on how it's used. If they just have to pass through, if they need to stay inside or if they have to kill the kraken will mean a different difficulty setting. This is a very clever beast and a lot depends on how a DM handles it and how creative the players are.
I hope some of you will give this a try.
Of course a setting like this can't replace the classic "normal" dungeon. I get that. But I think of it as some kind of fantasy variant of a safe. If magic was real and magic users were something like the hackers in the 21st century, how would they protect their stuff? Simply by putting a heavy metal door and some monsters in front of it? I don't think so.
Feedback, as always, would be very welcome.
*Octopi are really quite cunning, strong and aggressive. I mean, really, check this scary video:
I pity the shark...
**I handle skills in connection with endurance and it is possible to use endurance to make the skill check. Read the whole story here.
Still a bit vague on the edges, but here is my take on a shifting dungeon. An example will follow tomorrow, so this could be seen as a thought experiment about dungeons.
Against the 2D dungeon experience
The basics (pic. 1)
Maybe you'll think I'm crazy, but I wrote about this two days ago and the issue didn't let go. So when a buddy of mine was over for beer and movies, we asked ourselves what rules a shifting 3D dungeon might need. First thing we came up with: people who love mapping, will hate this. It's just not possible. Is that a problem? I don't think so. Players should not have the security of a map (at least not all the time...). All they need is a sense of direction or some tool for navigation and maybe even the feeling that a dungeon is, well, complex. Don't get me wrong, maps are nice. But they are also unsatisfying.
And what does a DM need? He'll describe it anyway, so what are the nice pictures for? What he needs is a feeling what the stone is like, are there ornaments or narrow passages. Stuff like that He needs to be able to get a feel for the place, then he can paint a picture using words. Alright, if the layout is two dimensional, it is usefull. But is it ever? Should it be? I've decided to go another way. The main dungeons in my campaign will have shifting elements.
How to sabotage and navigate
Those shifting areas have a powersource (magic or divine). The game already delivers possibilities to find such a source (scrying, some cleric spells) and research is also a viable option. A thief should be able to get there and sabotage* it so that it might not shift for some time (not destroying it, that should be very difficult and result in a very big bang). So the wizard and the thief will be busy, maybe even the cleric to some extent. Any inhabitants of or near the dungeon will keep the fighter busy, too. Dwarves might be very useful in this, but that goes without saying.
Move those tiles! (pic. 2)
The group in the shifting dungeon
Alright, a DM will have an idea how to describe this dungeon. This being part of a narration, it is very flexible. F**k those 10' corridors, it's about tension. The players, if they are somehow in the middle of this, might choose directions hoping the thief, the magic user, the cleric and/or the dwarf are right about the general direction. Small passages, stairs, maybe even deadends and some crushed bones are part of this.
As soon as this starts moving, a DM needs to know a few things:
Step 1: Assign range to x, y and z
The number of moving parts in every direction. This is very abstract, but that's good, because we're working with dice here. So the first step is to assign a number to x, y and z. It's the number of units a group has to move to get from one side to the other.
Step 2: Assign movement and direction
The next step is to specify how fast and where those units move. So x, y, z and the direction get a dice (see pic. 1). 1D8 for directions: 1 x, y, z = +; 2 x, y = +, z = -; 3 x, z = +, y = -; 4 y, z = +, x = -; 5 x, y, z = -; 6 x, y = -, z = +; 7 x, z = -, y = +; 4 y, z = -, x = + (see pic. 2). Another idea is to use a D10 with 9 and 10 leading to the source (9 = they can see it, 10 = leads directly there).
Step 3: Set difficulty
The last touch is to give it some features, like a pattern, safe passages, hidden rooms and a method to give them pain. This determines the difficulty of the dungeon. Big, slow moving units might get them lost, but not kill them, for instance. I'd give them a DEX-check (DEX + 1D20 with a difficulty somewhere between 20 and 45 (45 being nearly impossible and rare), everything under the difficulty would be damage (save for half, with a possibility of getting separated from the group or, worse case scenario, stuck/crushed). If there any traps (that is a unit that moves to bottomless) is as easy set as giving it coordinates. If somebody is controlling the dungeon, he might even be able to shift the group in there (if he is aware of them).
Not moving, but still complex?
If shifting is not an option, steps one and three are still good to go. Navigation is key then. They get in somewhere and they want to get out somewhere. The DM rolls x, y, z as intended, the navigators roll shifts the result in one direction. The result still gives the DM something to tell (up, down, left, right, distance). Traps and features are still fixed with coordinates.
The dungeon as enemy?
That is the gist of it. I'll do an example tomorrow to illustrate it, but for now this is enough to digest, I guess.
* Skills might be a good option, but that varies from DM to DM.
Wrath of the Titans is not a very good movie. The story is uninspired and the acting is not very deep, either. But the set pieces are something else and nice to behold. Especially the underworld and the labyrinth are beautiful and got the DM in my brain chatting up a storm, so to speak.
What follows are some pictures (found in an interview about the development here) and a few ideas I got about it.. A video with some scenes of the labyrinth moving and shifting can be found here.
It all starts at an impressive door of magical enhanced stone:
Hephaestus opening a magical door.
To open the door, the stones have to be arranged in the right order. To move the pieces, magic is needed. This is pretty nice aspect for an "ultimate heist" dungeon crawl. One mission could be to find a draft of how the stones need to be arranged, the other one is an mechanical issue, so to speak.
To make it an entertaining experience for the players, it will need some sort of subsystem to make it work and produce some tension on the way. And it shouldn't be about not being able to open the door, but more about what ressources are needed to get there.
One of the missing pieces in D&D, for me at least, is the lack of rules for creating and manipulating (magic) environments. Sure, there are some connectors (how to create magic items, some spells, skills, etc.), but mostly it just gets waved away. How all those evil wizards are able to build the traps, doors, entire dungeons or creatures they have in their lair is just beyond the rule book (as far as I'm aware of).
How to manipulate matter
This idea is pretty vague right now, but I'll explore it further in another post. So far I'm thinking about giving Magic Users the possibility to sacrifice a spell slot to gain the ability to manipulate a certain kind of material to an extend related to the spell level used and how hard it is to work with the material. With racial modifications (it should be easy for dwarves to manipulate stone, for instance). Materials could be wood, leather, stone and metal (with some exotic variants for living matter and undead). Very experienced Magic Users should be able to manipulate more than one kind of material, but specialists working together should be an option, too. A somewhat different, but nonetheless very interesing approach to this is the Eberron class that James C. introduced a few days ago over at A Dungeon Master's Tale.
An ever shifting Megadungeon
After opening the magic door, the heroes enter the labyrinth. Here's a picture of it:
A megadungeon?
This is how a Megadungeon should look like, isn't it? Vast and intimidating. One of the characters in the movie calls himself "The Navigator". He is not of much use in this, but in a D&D game, this is were a thief should come in handy. And I don't mean scouting, but more like evaluating safe passage and finding shortcuts. So here is another thing about Megadungeons: just "exploring" a big, complex structure like this is pretty pointless, a group needs a reason to be in there, something to find, something to go to.
But I digress. What really blew my mind was when the dungeon in the movie started to change.
Inside a shifting dungeon.
Let's say there are some static elements in a dungeon like this. Factions in the dungeon might fight for those never changing elements and might even build traps to protect those save havens. The sections inbetween are always changing. Mapping is only in a basic sense possible. There might be patterns involved how it changes. But not for all parts. Some might malfunction, some might be controlled by someone. The hazards of such areas might be animated objects, magic traps, undead, creatures that are able to live in such an environment and the changing elements themself. Random encounters would be more likely, if the group finds a safe passage through the shifting dungeon (because the dungeons inhabitants will know about it) or very rare, if they are in unsafe areas (for the same reasons).
With the possibility to tinker with the moving parts of the dungeon (sabotage by the thief, magic manipulation by a specialist Magic User, maybe clerics can be involved, too), a whole new set of adventure opportunities arise. Preparation becomes a crucial necessity and that's what I was looking for.
That's it so far, the rest will follow. Here is another nice pic from the movie:
Still awesome. Commenting there seems to be disabled and there is a need for more levels (I guess).
Anyway, it made my day.
Honestly, remembering this vaguely, I thought I'd still be level 1. But this good soul made advancement quite fair and I ended up being a Level 3 Blogger (Enthusiast!), on a good (?) way to be a Commentator. Made the ranger quite happy :)
So, fellow bloggers, for the slim chance you didn't see it when it made noice in the blogosphere or simply forgot about it, check it out! It's worth remembering...
Here we go, my attempt on NPCs and social interaction. Well, the final piece, that is.
Social status and social structure (NPCs)
To flesh this out as needed, I'd suggest to use some sort of chaotic advancement table (my take on it for Goblins may be found here and for Zombies here), using bell curve of results for propability (it might be used as a Random Encounter Table, too). The result is the Social Status Table at the end of this post.
But there is more. I'll reproduce all the tables I've made for this exercise below for easier access. Part 1 is here, part 2 is here.
It's not easy to build a working social structure for the game. The level of detail is crucial. The following tables should produce NPCs and their relation to the PCs en passant if needed or help preparing the game to the level of detail desired. Using all of this tables just once (and the last table twice or more, if desired), gives a DM race, gender, alignment, hd/level, main ability score, reaction to a PC, social status, occupation, education, residence and physical appearence/attitude in round about 3 minutes of rolling dice and writing stuff down. All of that should work just fine with any D&D variant up to 3.x.
Origin (1d20 (+1d6); even = male, uneven= female):
1-4 Human, local
5-8 Human, local (1d6: 1-3 young*, 4-6 old)
9-10 Human, visiting
11-12 Human, visiting (1d6: 1-3 young, 4-6 old)
13-14 Elve (1 in 6 chance of being local)
15-16 Dwarf (1 in 6 chance of bein local)
17-18 Halfling (1 in 6 chance of being local)
19-20 Exotic (1d6**: 1 Goblin Merchant 2 Orc Trader 3 Troglodyte
Quacksalver 4-6 Outlander)
*in connection with the Social Status Table, it's "son/daughter of a ..."
**for 1-3 a roll on the Social Status Table is not necessary...
* If a Monster Reaction roll turns friendly, skip NPC Reaction Table and go from there. **With neutral characters, roll 1d6 for random alignment: 1-2 lawful, 3-4 neutral, 5-6 chaotic.
Main ability scores (NPCs)
Now the NPCs main ability score needs to be determined. It tells a DM a lot about the NPC. For one it shows the relation a NPC might have towards a character (does he/she hate the character for his strength because he his weak, or does he/she admire it, maybe even for the same reason, etc,). As a close second, the DM gets a hint what the NPC is about (a wise NPC might be into local politics, a dextrous one into related crafts, etc.).
A strong reaction shows a strong connection of sorts, a less strong reaction gives just a suggestion :
Love/hate (1d10): 1-5 characters main ability score; 6-10 indicates any other ability score than the characters main ability score, just go down the list and skip the ability score in question.
Any other reaction (1d6): 1 STR 2 DEX 3 CON 4 INT 5 WIS 6 CHA
Character Aspects (1d20)
1-2 Thin (-1 to Strength)
3-4 Choleric (-1 to Wisdom, +1 to Constitution)
5-6 Melancholic (+1 to Intelligence)
7-8 Nimble (+1 to Dexterity)
9-12 Normal
13-14 Serene (+1 to Wisdom)
15-16 Vivid (+1 to Luck/Charisma)
17-18 Brawny (+1 to Strength)
19-20 Fat (+1 Constitution, -1 Dexterity)
Social Status (1d8+1d12):
First roll indicates social status, subsequent rolls add to that. The IRM is for the relationship system proposed in part 1. Take the IRM of the last roll on this table, it's basically needed to determine modifications if a character attempts to engage in an relationship (like, if you roll for the fathers/mothers opinion about it or some such thing) or to see what influence a rival, for instance, might have.
2 High level adventurer: Level is 16+1d20, main ability score suggests class.
Subsequent rolls: Add +3 to level (or hd)
IRM: (A) -50 (B) -30 (C) -10 (D) +/-0 (C) +10
3 Mid level adventurer: Level is 8+1d10, main ability score suggests class.
Subsequent rolls: Add +2 to level (or hd)
IRM: (A) -30 (B) -10 (C) +/-0 (D) +10 (C) +30
4 Low level adventurer: Level is 1d8, main ability score suggests class.
Subsequent rolls: Add +1 to level (or hd)
IRM: (A) -20 (B) -5 (C) +/-0 (D) +5 (C) +20
5 NPC related to an adventurer: (1d12 for entry, even results = male, uneven = female) 1-2 high level, not from around 3-4 high level, local 5-6 mid level, not from around 7-8 mid level, local 9-10 low level, not from around, 11-12 low level, local) Main ability score indicates profession (STR: protection, DEX: scribe, bookmaking, CON: ceremonies, INT: scholary, WIS: public, CHA: leading).
Subsequent rolls: Formal education in addition to occupation (better standing). After that: higher INT-score (+1 every time), profession that needs formal education (scribe, librarian, etc).
IRM: (A) -20 (B) -5 (C) +/-0 (D) +5 (C) +20
6 Owned: Main ability score indicates field of work (STR: hard labour, DEX: manual labour, CON: strenuous labour, INT: education, bookkeeping, WIS: social, CHA: seduction).
Subsequent rolls: Streak of bad luck recently (use result of d8 also for: 1 enmity 2 illness 3 stolen from 4 addiction 5 got betrayed).
IRM: (A) -5 (B) +/-0 (C) +5 (D) +10 (C) +20
7 Law enforcement: Main ability score indicates field of expertise (STR: protection, fighting, DEX: interrogation, CON: patrol, INT: bookkeeping, street knowledge, WIS: public relations, investigation, CHA: leading).
Subsequent rolls: Military trainig (+1 to attack rolls with one weapon). Every roll thereafter marks him a veteran with experience (+1 hd/level every time).
IRM: (A) -50 (B) -30 (C) -10 (D) +/-0 (C) +10
8 Poor: Roll again on this table, to see, what status the NPC came from. Main ability score indicates how the NPC handles being poor (STR: aggressive, DEX: exuberant, CON: persistent, INT: scheming, WIS: empathetic, CHA: engaging).
Subsequent rolls: Streak of bad luck recently (use result of d8 also for: 1 enmity 2 illness 3 stolen from 4 hurt 5 lost something 6 got betrayed 7 addiction).
IRM: (A) -5 (B) +/-0 (C) +5 (D) +10 (C) +20
9 Craftsmen: Main ability score indicates occupation (STR: hard labour, like masonry, DEX: fine manual labour, like gold schmith CON: work that needs endurance, like smithery, INT: a craft, that assures an constant income and has a technical aspect, like carpenter, WIS: a craft with a strong social connection, like brewing or baking, CHA: produces something with public appeal, like clothes).
Subsequent rolls: Wealthy (first time: good clothes and living, then: expensive clothes and jewelry, luxury living, after that: small magic item, etc.)..
Subsequent rolls: Military trainig (+1 to attack rolls with one weapon). After that: has seen combat. Every roll thereafter marks him a veteran with experience (+1 hd/level every time).
Subsequent rolls: Military trainig (+1 to attack rolls with one weapon). After that: has seen combat. Every roll thereafter marks him a veteran with experience (+1 hd/level every time).
Subsequent rolls: Military trainig (+1 to attack rolls with one weapon). After that: has seen combat. Every roll thereafter marks him a veteran with experience (+1 hd/level every time).
Subsequent rolls: Wealthy (first time: good clothes, then: expensive clothes and jewelry, after that: small magic item, etc.).
IRM: (A) -5 (B) +/-0 (C) +5 (D) +10 (C) +20
14 Merchant: An automatic +1 to CHA. Main ability score indicates style of selling (STR: aggressive, DEX: exuberant, CON: persistent, INT: scheming, WIS: empathetic, CHA: engaging)
Subsequent rolls: Wealthy (first time: good clothes and living, then: expensive clothes and jewelry, luxury living, after that: small magic item, etc.).
IRM: (A) -20 (B) -5 (C) +/-0 (D) +5 (C) +20
15 Clergy: Main ability score indicates position (STR: protection, DEX: scribe, bookmaking, CON: ceremonies, INT: scholary, WIS: public, CHA: leading).
Subsequent rolls: Formal education in addition to occupation (better standing). After that: higher WIS-score (+1 every time), better social status, because cherished for his oppinion (may be in politics).
IRM: (A) -30 (B) -10 (C) +/-0 (D) +10 (C) +30
16 Entertainer: Main ability score indicates expertise (STR: power display, DEX: acrobatics, CON: motivated, INT: wordplay, WIS: fortunetelling, CHA: seduction).
Subsequent rolls: Formal education in addition to occupation (better standing). After that: higher WIS-score (+1 every time), better social status, because cherished for his oppinion (may be in politics).
IRM: (A) -5 (B) +/-0 (C) +5 (D) +10 (C) +20
17 NPC related to person of upper class: (1d12 for entry, even results = male, uneven = female) 1-2 higher upper class, not from around 3-4 higher upper class, local 5-6 middle upper class, not from around 7-8 middle upper class, local 9-10 lower upper class, not from around, 11-12 lower upper class, local) Main ability score indicates profession (STR: protection, DEX: scribe, bookmaking, CON: ceremonies, INT: scholary, WIS: public, CHA: leading).
Subsequent rolls: Formal education in addition to occupation (better standing). After that: higher INT-score (+1 every time), profession that needs formal education (scribe, librarian, etc).
IRM: (A) -20 (B) -5 (C) +/-0 (D) +5 (C) +20
18 NPC of lower upper class: (result of the d8 shows main income: 1 land 2 beverages 3 politics 4 animals 5 exotic 6 food 7 crafts 8 transport) Main ability score indicates use of power (STR: aggressive, DEX: exuberant, CON: persistent, INT: scheming, WIS: empathetic, CHA: engaging).
Subsequent rolls: Result of the d8 indicates extraordinary possessions: 1 land 2 manufacture 3 magical 4 live stock 5 money 6 residence 7 crafts 8 transport).
IRM: (A) -20 (B) -5 (C) +/-0 (D) +5 (C) +20
19 NPC of middle upper class: (result of the d8 shows main income: 1 land 2 beverages 3 politics 4 animals 5 exotic 6 food 7 crafts 8 transport) Main ability score indicates use of power (STR: aggressive, DEX: exuberant, CON: persistent, INT: scheming, WIS: empathetic, CHA: engaging).
Subsequent rolls: Result of the d8 indicates extraordinary possessions: 1 land 2 manufacture 3 magical 4 live stock 5 money 6 residence 7 workshop 8 transport).
IRM: (A) -30 (B) -10 (C) +/-0 (D) +10 (C) +30
20 NPC of higher upper class: (result of the d8 shows main income: 1 land 2 beverages 3 politics 4 animals 5 exotic 6 food 7 crafts 8 transport) Main ability score indicates use of power (STR: aggressive, DEX: exuberant, CON: persistent, INT: scheming, WIS: empathetic, CHA: engaging).
Subsequent rolls: Result of the d8 indicates extraordinary possessions: 1 land 2 manufacture 3 magical 4 live stock 5 money 6 residence 7 workshop 8 transport).
IRM: (A) -50 (B) -30 (C) -10 (D) +/-0 (C) +10
How to use it
What you need is what's not already established during play. This means, you might want to build a random encounter from scratch, just use all of those tables to get a picture of what is encountered and how the reaction to a specific player might be. Or you know what is encountered and you want to beef it up or need some inspiration.
All this needs to go into playtesting now (tomorrow we play), to see if it all works as intended. But so far the results have been intriguing and I hope there is some useability for some of you. I will write a follow up post with examples and maybe I'll also throw a pdf together in the near future.
Comments, critique and suggestions are, of course, appreciated.
