Introducing New Characters Part Two
Yesterday, I talked about a recent game where I had to introduce two new characters into an existing party, and why one character melded beautifully with the group, and the other one didn’t.
There are a number of other problems that can come up with introducing a new character to the party, one of the biggest ones being referred to as the union card - the near instant inclusion of a player’s character, despite whatever circumstances they meet under.
Trust, specifically, is an issue when introducing a new character to the party. Many groups will undoubtedly have secrets, and quite possibly enemies. The worry that someone might betray them upon discovering this, or even that they were sent by their enemies, is quite realistic. This worry is even more important if the group is involved in something greater than itself, perhaps a noble quest. If this is the case, any group would be extremely leery of letting any newcomer simply join their ranks.
Clearly, these issues of trust are best dealt with if you want the best role-playing and story-telling opportunities possible. What can be done about it?
In a DnD game my wizard character would announce to the party that he was going to give them all some sort of “mental buff,” and then proceed to pretend to cast it on everyone in the party but the newcomer, who would be saved for last. He would then have Hypnotism cast on him, and since they would fore-go the saving throw the spell automatically succeeded, followed by a demand for a statement of the character’s intentions. This quickly established at least a basic level of trust.
In situations where the magical or technical means of ensuring an honest answer aren’t available, the best situation is often to have the characters sit down and talk for awhile. This can be a great opportunity for some role-playing, or you can simply skip over the conversation and come to a general consensus of what was discussed and what the results were.
Unfortunately, many times this is simply not an option due to time constraints or some other obstacle. If this is the case, the new character should have something immediate to offer the party that would gain at least their temporary trust - until they have time to further establish it. Some examples of things for the newcomer to offer:
- Money
- Information
- A contact
- Transportation
- Medical Aid/Healing
- Hiding place
- Aid in combat
It is possible to by-pass most of these concerns if the new character some former connection with the PCs, either they had met previously or share a mutual friend. It is easy to say that the characters had become friendly with someone in their neighborhood who played a minor role that never came into the spotlight - until now. The other option is for the newcomer to have a referral of sorts from someone who is trusted by the group.
The other concern characters might feel when a newcomer joins the party is that they could wind up being a liability, either because of previous enemies they’ve made, or mistakes they might make in the future - mistakes that could result in the party being killed. It is not uncommon for many veteran fighters to refuse to fight alongside someone who is unknown to them, or to rely on their preparations for a fight. Anyone with common sense would be cautious when placing their lives in someone else’s hands, which is exactly what happens when you enter combat with them.
To get over this, it’s best to simply let the newcomer demonstrate their worth. Put them in a fight that the characters can observe, either against an outside enemy or against a member of the party in order “to prove his worth.”
Remember, when you introduce a new character you are setting the stage for everything else that character will do in the game - a bad introduction can create plot holes or inter-party problems.
What other problems have you run into when introducing new characters? What do you do to ensure the process goes smoothly?
Introducing New Characters
General Site Update: Following last weeks Wordpress update, I apparently made a mistake which resulted in my last few posts not being saved or published on the site - a fact I only discovered this afternoon. It looks like the problem has been fixed, and updates should be coming once again.
Introducing new characters into an existing campaign can be very tricky. There are a number of issues that can complicate things further such as the realism of someone being in the immediate area or the existing PCs having any reason to trust the newcomers with their money and secrets, much less their lives.
Last week I ran a session of my Star Wars game, which takes place sometime after the Sith War, about 4,000 years before the movie. The existing party was made up of two young Jedi who each left the Order and were going through trials to be initiated by Sith Spirits. The requirement for their initiation was that they hunt down and kill at least one Jedi for each of them.
We explained all this to the two new players before the game. Brian chose to play a Force Adept with a strong inclination to the Dark Side, who was found by one of the Sith hopefuls and recruited. All in all, a good concept and a good match with the party.
Nevin’s character was a stark contrast. He built a Rodian Fringer, a mechanic with piloting abilities. He was Force Sensitive, but had no force abilities and no real combat ability. I had reservations in the beginning, and I voiced my concerns, but said that he “should play what [he] wanted,” as I don’t, as a rule, tell players what they should and shouldn’t play.
Looking back, this was a mistake. I should have vetoed the character and either helped Nevin’s rework the character into something viable or helped him build a new character from scratch. As it was, Nevin’s character barely fit in with the party and was barely engaged in combat when the rest of the party entered it. In fact, there were barely any opportunities for his character to shine - and the character build was only half the problem.
Mentally, the character was incongruous with the group. Everyone else had something that drew them to the Dark Side in some way or another, an anger or hatred or fear that they had. Nevin’s character did not. In addition to this, the rest of the party were, in the words of Zorg, “killers - dyed-in-the-wool killers. Cold blooded, clean, methodical and thorough.” Nevin’s character, however, was not.
All of these differences were highlighted and made more clear when their initiation began, and they were presented with a series of Force Illusions which tested their reactions to different circumstances, and were generally designed to push each character further down the path of the dark side and down the path of power. Nevin’s character went temporarily insane almost immediately.
The lesson from all of this is simple, when introducing new characters, it’s important to be willing to veto the ones that just won’t work out, and then help the person correct the problem or build an entirely new character.
Getting Back Into Gaming
There are a number of things that can stop you from gaming, from schedule conflicts to lack or energy or problems with the gaming group. The worst, without a doubt, is when any of these are combined with burnout. The worst part of burnout is that it becomes a cycle that feeds on itself: You need to take a break from gaming, and when doing so you lose any “gaming mojo” that you had built up. When you come back, you might be suffering from some residual burnout, or atleast be prone to burning out again. And the longer you go without gaming, the harder it seems to be to get back into it.
So what do you when you’re ready to come back to gaming after an extended break?
Switch roles. If you’re usually the game master, may-be it’s time to just sit back and let someone else weave the story while you get to be a hero. This takes a lot less creative energy than preparing and running a session and juggling NPCs, storylines, facts about the world and game mechanics.
On the other hand, if you’ve mostly been a player, may-be it’s time to sit down behind the screen and tell a story. There is something very gratifying about taking control and responsibility for a story for the first time, and getting to weave different elements of a story together can be a great way to recharge your batteries if you’re used to navigating the maze of a story instead of designing it.
Do something different. For me, this was finally playing an evil character in an evil party - a Cult of Vecna to be exact. As I’ve wanted to play an evil character for sometime, finally getting to do so with the approval and cooperation of the group was very gratifying. Moreover, it completely changed the roles our characters had to play, and even the way we went about playing the game. It easily inspires roleplaying situations, and gives us a lot of opportunity to interact with people while trying to keep a secret agenda.
Play a game that works differently. I often find that feelings of burnout or futility are tied into over familiarity with a game system. After awhile, seeing the same basic list of feats in different d20 games makes the games, and the characters in them, feel much more repetitive than they should. Another solution could be playing a different edition of a game you’re already playing. The differences between the Dungeons and Dragons editions are remarkable, even if you don’t count the 3/3.5 editions - previous editions use very similar mechanics, but the abilities and structure of classes and races are laid out differently in each edition.
Keep the sessions short. Before I took a break from gaming, twelve hour sessions seemed like nothing to me. Coming back into gaming, I notice my attention starts to wander after five hours or so. It’s not that I’m not longer having fun, it’s simply that I’ve had enough. Continuing past this point, especially on a regular or repeated basis, will quickly lead you back down the path to burnout. It’s better to cut the session short and be eager to start again next time than get overly drained and burnt out again.
Go at your own pace. It can be tempting to start gaming a lot without much time in between, especially if that’s what the rest of the group wants and is pressuring you to do. Your duty is to remain firm: Anymore than you’re comfortable with and you’ll just wind up burnt out and not gaming again. Arrange for a second game to be played when you’re not there, or for your character to pop in and out of gameplay as your schedule permits.
Ask “Why do I want to game?” Whatever your reason for gaming, you need to be clear with yourself about it so that you can pursue it instead of hoping that you get it. If you game to relieve frustration, talk to friends, or tell stories but you don’t wind up doing enough of these things then you are going to burn out again.
Find a new group. In some cases, it may simply be that you were not compatible with the whole or part of your gaming group. Perhaps you had different reasons for playing, different style of play, different preferred games or just an unsolvable personality conflict. Whatever the reason, a fresh group could fix the problem. Consider this carefully before acting on it, and be sure not to burn any bridges - you, or they, might come around some day.
Is there anything that’s helped you ease back into gaming after a hiatus?
